Most people are familiar with the screech of a close friend or family member at the sight of a spider. But just how dangerous are the eight-legged insects that live here in Ireland?
New research conducted by scientists from the Ryan Institute in NUI Galway has finally answered this question.
The study, led by Dr Michel Dugon, was undertaken over a five-year period and looked at how False Widow spiders have been so successful at spreading throughout towns and cities worldwide.
It examined a wide range of characteristics specific to the False Widow spider, including its venom, symptoms after envenomation, ecology and behaviour.
The venom yields of 550 Noble False Widows were obtained for the study published in the international journal Toxins, including 125 males and 425 females.
The spider was first reported in England in 1879 and has since spread northwards towards Scotland and westward through Wales and Ireland in recent decades.
Scientists found that the Noble False Widow spider has venom up to 230 times more potent than that of Ireland's native species.
The findings could explain how the spider has spread through Ireland, defeating much bigger species such as lizards, bats, shrews, and other spiders.
Where to find them
Unfortunately, for those with arachnophobia (the fear of spiders), the study found False Widows are active all year round, with peak activity between August and November.
The research also revealed where you are most likely to find the spiders in Ireland.
It found that False Widows are extremely common on street furniture, signposts, traffic lights, bus shelters, boundary railings of parks and graveyards, garden furniture, garden walls, pillars, and gates, regularly outnumbering native spiders.
They are mainly active after dark and typically prey on a wide range of insects and other arachnids.
The species also has a high reproductive rate and is capable of producing several egg sacs each year, containing, on average, a whopping 98 eggs.
Do you need to worry? Not if you're human
Throughout the study, the False Widow spider killed and ate 95% of its opponents.
The research found that the spider can make calculated decisions on whether to attack large or small prey depending on how much venom is left in their glands.
They will avoid taking on large opponents if there is not enough venom available, opting for smaller challengers instead.
The spider is also calculated in battle, targeting its enemy's most innervated body parts, where the neurotoxic venom is most efficient.
The team of scientists has encouraged the public to email them at falsewidow@nuigalway.ie to report sightings of the Noble False Widow spider.
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