Aussie man shares photos of giant golden orb spiders hidden near his country home - and reveals the chilling reason the mothers keep males stuck in their thick webs
- Man shares terrifying photos of golden orb weaving spiders living near his home
- Queensland man discovered the spiders in Mareeba in Far North Queensland
- He compared the 'incredible' strength of the golden orbs web to fishing line
- The web will vibrate to attract the spiders prey, catching small birds and bats
A man has shared terrifying photos of the gigantic golden orb spiders that build webs as strong as 'fishing line' near his country home.
The man, who resides in the small town of Mareeba in Far North Queensland, posted the spine-tingling photos to Reddit on Wednesday.
He said the spiders' 'incredibly strong' webs were extremely difficult to break with human hands, comparing the strength to fishing line.
A man has shared terrifying photos of the gigantic golden orb spiders that build webs as strong as 'fishing line' near his home in Far North Queensland
'If you're not paying attention and walk into one, you'll know about it', he said.
'It's a unique sensation walking into a super strong web in the dark.'
The man explained the giant spiders were not aggressive unless you got too close, but said messing with their web or bumping into them was a sure way to get bit.
'They have venom, it isn't toxic enough to kill a person but it will hurt a lot and for a while after,' he wrote.
'Friends who have been bitten have told me it's extremely painful, some can also have an anaphylactic reaction and die.'
Golden orb weaving spiders are known for building large, strong nets that vibrate to attract their prey, sometimes ensnaring bats and small birds.
The spiders will remain in their webs day and night, and protect themselves from bird attacks by securing their webs with multiple, overlapping layers.
The man said this golden orb was about the size of a bread and butter plate or his hand, and said the spider had been acting defensive, as if it was about to jump on him
The man explained both the spiders he snapped were females and were surrounded by smaller males on the webs.
'She keeps a couple of tiny boyfriends on the web, and she eats them after copulating - they are her snacks', he said.
The females are the larger of the species at 4 to 4.5cm long and can grow to a leg-span of 15cm, with the males measuring just 5 to 6mm.
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The Mareeba resident described a terrifying interaction he had with a 10cm long golden orb spider down by a river a few weeks ago.
'My dog came barreling up the riverbank just as I was inches away taking a picture, she knocked one of the anchor webs that was tied to the grass I was standing on, the orb nearly launched at me, ready to bite', he recalled.
Other Reddit users shared similar experiences in the comments of the thread.
'If you haven’t walked face first into one of these webs in the dark you never grew up in Australia', one commenter said.
The man said he discovered the golden orb spiders and their gigantic webs near his country home in Mareeba, Far North Queensland (pictured)
'Anyone who lives in rural areas in QLD will remember running into these in the dark playing 'spotlight' as a kid. Good times', another said.
'The webs they do are incredible. You can see that golden thread clearly in this pic. It's also really strong so you'll know if you walk through it', a third shared.
'Super strong webs. Those bad-boys can eat small birds and bats', another said.
The spiders are typically found in forests and woodlands, coastal sand dunes and shrub land, with Queensland being home to three different species.
The specie is reluctant to bite humans, with symptoms of the golden orb's bite causing swelling, numbness and mild pain, only occasionally nausea and dizziness.
