If you are anything like me, then you detest spiders with extreme prejudice. I, for one, share the same room with one, not without going for a can of bug spray or a flame thrower. But, despite how much we may fear these nasty little bugs, most of the thing we fear about them the most, their bites, result in little more than just a really itchy bump. And the concept of a spider that has a bite, which melts human flesh has always remained the stuff of bad science fiction. Well, we have some bad news. These little nightmares are very real.
It looks like a couple of scientists in Mexico didn’t have better things to do one day than to go out and discover the Loxoceles Tenochtitlan spider. It turns out that this spider contains an incredibly toxic venom that can melt human flesh. The bite often results in skin lesions that can measure up to 40 centimeters. Oh yeah, and one of the most common places they like to hang out is in household furniture. How’s that couch or chair you’re sitting in feeling right now? The lesions also can take quite a while to heal, as in months. And they tend to leave nasty scars. Also, we should note that children tend to be more affected by these bites developing more severe health issues. The spider’s venom can enter the bloodstream and destroy red blood cells.
This new type of spider belongs to the Violin species — more commonly known as recluse spiders. And there’s a bit of a funny story behind their discovery. You see, at first, they were mistaken for the Loxosceles Misteca, a species that also lives in Mexico but is mostly found in the states of Guerrero and Morelos. I know. Crazy, right?
We can thank a biologist working at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) Alejandro Valdez-Mondragon and his students Claudia-Navarro Karen Solis, Mayra Cortez, and Alma Juarez for discovering and naming this new species. Come on, everyone, let’s give them a big hand.
Valdez-Mondragon mentioned to a local news outlet:
“As it is very similar to the Loxosceles misteca, we thought that it had been introduced to this region by the shipping of ornamental plants, but when doing molecular biology studies of both species, we realised that they are completely different.”
The biologist also said that Loxoceles spiders are much more likely to bit humans when they feel threatened. That said, these dangerous little buggers are known to hide between the gaps of everyday household objects such as sofas, appliances, and walls.
“We provide them with the temperature, humidity and food to establish themselves in our homes, which puts us at risk of having an accident with them, although they also perform an important ecological function when feeding on insects.”
As for me, I’m adding Mexico to my virtual vacation only list right up there with Australia.
Source: Honey Bee