WANTED: Funnel Web Spiders & Egg Sacs!
The Australian Reptile Park needs your help collecting funnel web spiders and egg sacs. By safely capturing a funnel web spider or egg sac and bringing it to an official spider drop-off point, you are directly helping to save lives. Every spider delivered provides us with the chance to extract precious raw venom, which is then used in lifesaving antivenom production. Without regular donations from the public, we cannot produce enough venom to meet Australia’s medical needs.
Each year, particularly during the warmer months, male funnel web spiders wander in search of a mate. This is when they are most often encountered in backyards, garages, gardens, and sometimes even inside shoes left outside. Finding and donating them through an official funnel web drop off point supports the antivenom program and saves lives.
Egg sacs are just as valuable as adult spiders. Each sac may contain well over 100 spiderlings, which can be raised by keepers and added into the venom program once they mature. Donating a funnel web egg sac provides a long-term boost to the program, creating a reliable supply of spiders for years to come.
If you come across a funnel web spider or discover an egg sac in your garden, follow the steps below to collect them safely before making a spider drop-off. Every single contribution plays a vital role in protecting Australians.
Our Keepers are always on the lookout for funnel web egg sacs in hotspots across the Central Coast. If you live in Wyoming, Ourimbah, Matcham or Terrigal, you may get a visit from Keepers looking to explore your backyard!
How to Collect a Funnel Web Spider and Egg Sac
There are different ways to collect a funnel web spider and egg sac depending on whether the spider is with her sac or not. Catching a funnel web spider is easier than you think, make sure to follow these guidelines to ensure your safety!
Step 1: Grab a smooth utensil, like a spoon with long handle, and a smooth container, like a glass jar, with a secure lid. Funnel webs cannot climb smooth or shiny surfaces, never use a wooden utensil as the funnel web can climb it.
Step 2 varies depending on what you find:
- If you find a spider alone: Gently place the jar in front of the spider and encourage them to walk in using the spoon.
- If you find an egg sac alone: Using the spoon, gently scoop the egg sac into a container alone. If you find a spider and egg sac in different locations, do not collect them into the same container or the spider will destroy the egg sac.
- If you find a spider with their egg sac: If the female spider is with her egg sac, using a spoon scoop her into the same jar, ensuring not to stress her or she will destroy the egg sac. Do not attempt to separate the mother from the egg sac.
Step 3: Place a small amount of damp soil from the same area and secure the lid tightly
Step 4: Bring the funnel web spider and/or egg sac to the Australian Reptile Park or your closet drop-off location listed below, as soon as possible!
Never attempt to handle a spider with your bare hands. If you are not confident, contact a licensed pest controller or your nearest spider drop-off location for advice.
What Happens to the Spiders?
When a funnel web spider or egg sac is dropped off at the Australian Reptile Park, it immediately becomes part of our lifesaving work in our spider venom program.
- Spiders are carefully housed in individual enclosures by our keepers.
- They are safely milked for raw venom fortnightly under expert care.
- The venom is sent to CSL Seqirus, where it is turned into antivenom distributed to hospitals across Australia.
- In the case of egg sac drop-offs, keepers carefully hatch and rear the spiderlings, ensuring they grow strong enough to enter the venom program.
Every single spider drop-off contributes to saving lives across the country.
Why It Matters
The success of Australia’s funnel web antivenom program depends almost entirely on community involvement. Thanks to your help, there have been no deaths from a funnel web spider bite since 1981.
By donating spiders or egg sacs, you are playing a direct role in saving lives. This world-renowned program is only possible thanks to the support of the public, who help by bringing in spiders and egg sacs to the Park or one of our official drop-off locations.
Spider Safety
Any spider larger than a dollar coin should be treated with caution. All spiders have venom glands, though only the larger species have fangs able to puncture human skin. Of the 5 spiders that regularly cause concern in the Greater Sydney Area, funnel web spiders and red back spiders are the most common.
Safety rules for spiders:
- Don’t leave clothes, shoes, towels, etc on the floor. Funnel webs like cool, dark, and hidden spaces, so these items are perfect hiding spots.
- Check shoes before putting them on. Male funnel webs often wander into footwear left outside overnight.
- Don’t walk around outdoors at night without footwear. Funnel webs are most active after dark, and shoes protect you from accidentally getting bitten.
- Don’t handle spiders that appear to have drowned. Spiders can live for days submerged under water.
- Wear gloves when gardening or working outside. Many spiders live in damp, sheltered areas and may bite if disturbed.
- Never touch a spider with your bare hands. A funnel webs powerful fangs can pierce skin, so handling them directly is extremely dangerous.
Taking these precautions reduces the chance of a surprise encounter and getting accidentally bitten by a spider.