Record flooding in Australia this week as had an unexpected consequence, driving hordes of spiders – including one of the world’s deadliest species – out of their usual habitat and into homes and backyards.Flooding in Australia’s southeastern New South Wales state forced 18,000 people to evacuate and at least 100 others to be rescued after days of heavy rain forced rivers in the region to overflow.Those rains subsided Wednesday, but the flooding appears to have forced eight-legged residents of the region out of their homes as well. Social media posts showed pictures and videos of fences, walls and backyards covered with spiders seeking dry and higher ground.The phenomenon also prompted the Australian Reptile Park in Somersby, north of Sydney, to issue a warning Wednesday regarding funnel web spiders, considered one of the world’s deadliest, and indigenous to New South Wales State.In a statement, the park director said the floods have also likely driven funnel web spiders out of their habitats and into populated areas.  The spiders, named for their funnel-shaped webs, can be aggressive if cornered and have a highly toxic, fast-acting venom that can kill a person, with 13 recorded deaths from bites.  There have been no deaths reported since an antivenom was developed in the early 1980s. The statement encouraged people who “feel safe enough to do so” – using gloves and other protective equipment – to catch and deliver wandering funnel web spiders to the park or other designated collection facilities to help create more anti-venom.
 
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