HALLOWEEN came early for a Tamborine Mountain couple after a funnel-web spider fell from their bedroom’s sliding door, brushing against Bruna Carolino’s arm before landing on the deck mat below.
Her partner, David Hynes, said the incident happened early one morning when Bruna opened the door to step outside.
“When she went to walk out, it fell down from the outside, brushed against her arm and landed on the mat,” he said.
“She shut the door and sent me a photo asking if it was dangerous – and I said yes.”
Mr Hynes contacted a pest controller, who confirmed it was a funnel-web spider, one of Australia’s most venomous species.
“I went to the Queensland Museum to see if they needed a specimen,” he said.
“They didn’t, because I would have rather given it as a specimen or had it milked if it could have been – rather than just killing it.”
He believes the spider may have been a Northern Tree Funnel-web, a species known to inhabit the rainforests around Tamborine Mountain and Lamington National Park.
“They’re quite similar looking to the Sydney funnel-web, very similar if not the same toxicity,” he said.
“You just don’t have as much contact with them, but they’re very, very similar spiders.”
The couple, who have lived on the mountain for a few years, were surprised to find one so close to home.
“The pest control guy said it’s pretty rare, not something you see very often at all,” Mr Hynes said.
While relieved his partner wasn’t bitten, he said seeing the spider up close was unnerving.
“When you see photos they look mean, but when they’re in person, they actually look quite serious so it gives you a bit of a fright,” he said.
The couple’s encounter served as a reminder to remain cautious of local wildlife.
“I was aware they might be up here, but I wouldn’t have expected to see one fall from the house,” Mr Hynes said.
“It was definitely a surprise.”
