With cold weather moving in, Britain’s most venomous spider is headed into homes.
Swindon resident Bob Hatter was surprised to discover a false widow spider had made its web on the windowsill of his garage in Upper Stratton yesterday afternoon.
Though this critter hasn’t yet made it inside his home, it’s likely to move further indoors as the colder weather takes grasp of the United Kingdom in the coming weeks.
The false widow, related to the killer black widow, is venomous. Its venom causes localised pain, minor swelling and, in extreme cases, nausea. But in a worst-case scenario, it can lead to cardiac arrest.
In October 2014, an Irish man went into cardiac arrest and spent a day in intensive care after being bitten three times by what was claimed as a false widow.
Keeping your house clean is one way to put off spiders from moving in, an expert says.
Rob Simpson, manager of pest controllers register Basis Prompt, says simple precautions can be taken to reduce the likelihood of false widows.
“Keeping homes clean and tidy, sealing up cracks or holes in doors and windows and removing plants or debris from the outside of houses will help.
“Spiders will have fewer places to hide if you keep clutter to a minimum, so I would say keep your house tidy and vacuum regularly.
“You can spray dark corners of the home with pesticides and there’s an old wives tale about placing conkers on window sills, but I’m not sure that works.”
They have long legs and can reach about 15mm in size.
