The Banana Spider is known to hide among bananas shipped to the US and is really called the Brazilian Wandering Spider. These spiders are aggressive and very venomous and not intimidated by size (can attack people when threatened).
The odd part about the Banana Spider is that studies indicate only 33% of the spider bites actually contain any significant amount of venom, but those that are injected with venom could be in serious danger!
If you are bitten by a Brazilian Wandering spider (Phoneutria spp.), you should seek immediate emergency treatment as the venom could possibly be life threatening. The Phoneutria not only has a potent neurotoxin, but is said to have one of the most excruciatingly painful spider bites of all spiders due to its high concentration of serotonin.
Despite the Banana Spider’s reputation as the world’s deadliest spider, there are multiple studies that dispute the ability for the spider to actually kill a human and one study suggested that a little over 2% of these spider bites (mostly in children) were serious enough to require antivenom.
On the other hand, there are other studies suggesting that the Banana Spider is indeed the most toxic spider in the world based upon toxicology studies. One of the most notable and thorough studies is presented in the book “Venomous Animals and their Venoms Vol. III” by Wolfgang Bucheral and Eleanor Buckley. This study has some shocking findings that clearly demonstrate how lethal the Brazilian Wandering spider can actually be.
There is an antidote for the bite of a Banana Spider and was discovered by Carlos Chagas from Brazil.
If you see a spider hiding in a cluster of Bananas, you should move right along and possibly inform the store manager that is may be a Banana Spider!
I am a major arachniphobe!!!! I’m scared of even the relatively small (99.999% harmless) spiders here in western NY State.
I haven’t visited my sister in Florida. Reading this stuff makes me not want to rush to do it, much as I love her. I will NEVER live in a really warm climate. I’ll take snow over spiders (and scorpions).
@Sarah, I don’t think that’s a Banana Spider. Maybe you just THINK it is. I would suggest it being a garden spider but they don’t get that big…sorry…you mom did NOT hold a banana spider and you do NOT have one on your front porch if the facts your saying are true…
The spiders with the big bright yellow and black backs are “Orb Weavers”. Their venom is not poisonous. They make gorgeous webs. If you ever considered adopting a bread of spider, the Orb Weaver is a great choice during warm weather. They will eat tons of insects and disappear come cool weather.
@ Sarah
Craig is right. You are lying. They don’t call it a Brazilian Wandering Spider just for kicks, no. They call it that for a reason: they are found in BRAZIL and other parts of South and Central America. Lastly your mom did not hold these in her hand because one: they don’t inhabit in the US and two: they are very aggressive.
@ Sarah
You’re lying. Simple as that. They do not get up to 8 in. long and you cannot hold them in your hand. Brazilian wandering spiders have never been able to habitat anywhere in the U.S. because the humidity and weather is not suitable for them.
I am from Greenville, Mississippi. These spiders are everywhere here in the delta. I can remember being a little girl and MY mother holding these spiders and saying how harmless they are. I currently have one outside MY front door. NOW that I know she is a ,beautiful, venomous spider, I think ill start feeding her. After all she is 8in in diameter. In the south certain “people” are deathly afraid of #1 water. #2 spiders. Ha ha I know I won’t have any unwanted breakins HA
This is to Eddy who posted his remark (8/9/2010) about the danger of subject spider discussed in this blog. As he noted, he encountered a spider in N.C. of this description in a web. When he flicked his “cig butt” in to the spider’s web, the spider attacked it furiously. Eddy expressed safety concern and was soliciting readers of this blog for “informed info” as to what he should do. Simple, Eddy – quit smokin’ !
I have these weird spiders that live around my ornamental pond. I think they are just orb weavers, but I’m not sure as I have never seen them get real big. I have seen a big one before though. It was bigger than my torso and built a web that spanned a good 12 feet between my house and the trees in the ditch. I am not exaggerating either. It was when the neighborhood was in development. I had never seen one that big before. It’s web would have encased me, and I almost ran into it.
Anyhow, these spiders around my pond are starting to scare me, cause they have formed a colony and I can’t tell if they are orb weavers. They have this long arc of erratic web between the dead plant material hanging from the dead tulips from early summer. It’s legs are long and jagged, the upper body black, the bottom part hairy off white with a black pattern. I only saw one spider this evening. It’s starting to get big. It hides in the dead plant material then darts out along the web to catch pray. Imagine a lacrosse type web like a bowl-very erratic pattern. Anyhow, it’s strange.
i am totally moving from florida
I am slightly freaking out. I just found what looks to be a spider sac on our bananas that have been sitting on my kitchen counter for 6 days now. Is it a brazilian wandering spider sac and WHAT DO I DO?? I threw them away and it’s currently sitting in our trash cans in our basement. I’m paranoid that we have a poisonous spider in our home somewhere, let alone the egg sac on our bananas! Please help.
I live in St. Augustine, FL. I have a banana spider living in a web about 2 inches outside my sliding glass door. Three times I have observed it spitting out those zigzag filaments that I suspect may be start of the huge web it weaves. I drew back a drape, the noise must have startled the spider, it gyrated agitatedly and in 8 1/2 minutes had spun two zigzaggedy narrow, ladder-like webs, one below its body and one above its head. It was an amazing sight to see it spitting out this white oozy stuff and with its two shorter tentacles, and with the most intricate of motions, push and pull the silken filaments into the ladders. Its head was upright when it spun the lower part of the ladder. It worked its body into an upside down position and spun the top ladder. It spun the third of its ladders last night. This one has 3 extensions. Where do the others go, does the spider incorporate them into its gigantic web? because the spider and its web are silhouetted against the white ceiling of my carport I doubt if my pictures are going to be any good. Perhaps I will put a square of black cardboard behind it and try for a picture. Any suggestions?
I’ve seen almost a dozen of these spiders in and around my home since the start of the summer. They’re all brown and I’m betting on them being banana spiders, but I just don’t know enough to say for sure. They really took me by surprise at first because despite having a body a bit over an inch long, their LEGS span the whole length of my hand! So far we’ve had no bites, but the rate at which I’m seeing them is becoming a concern so I’ve started killing them and they just keep coming.
Today I found another HUGE freakin spider in the backseat of my car. It scared the crap out of my kids (and me too LOL) and I really need to know if they’re poisonous or if we can just relax. I’ve got several pictures of them, so if anyone knows enough to identify them for certain I’m happy to email them to you.
okay people..if the spider is yellow or bright brown and makes a huge web with a zig zag or curly pattern..its an orb weaver and is NOT dangerous..if you got bit by an unknown species and the bite has a bulls eye pattern, and turns crusty and black..it was either a brown recluse or hobo and a skin graft may be needed as there is not antivenin for their bites..lastly, banana spiders are NOT orb weavers..lets get this straight..banana spiders are brazilian wandering spiders and are usually found in banana crates/boxes and are Dangerous..but unless you work in produce or live in central or south America you shouldn’t be too worried about banana spiders..and just so the info sticks..Banana spiders are NOT yellow!
You know, if you don’t give change to the Hobo Spider, it will bite you.
I’m a small time entomologist and archaeologist. I really enjoy this site. all of the big yellow and black spiders are a very GOOD spider do not KILL. they eat tons of bad bugs. and also brown recluses you can not permanently get rid of. just like grasshoppers they come every year. some years there are more others less. bug poison does kill them. but they do get immune to it. that’s why you get new bug spray each year. if you aren’t afraid of spiders catch some and feed them to a long bodied cellar spider. they look like brown recluse’s but they have long legs like harvestmen or Daddy long legs and they live in messy webs. they are good do not kill. I hope this helps people.
I am deathly afraid of spiders. They are neat, but my brother caught one and ate it. He got real sick and started sweating. Don’t eat spiders!
More added info to my comment below.
There are spiders around my house I see once about every other day, mainly in my garage and kitchen. I think one of these may be what bit me in my car.
They are brown with quite long flat legs and black racing stripes, normally two symmetrical ones, on their backs. I’ve also noticed that they do not have webs, as I always find them wandering around on the floor or the walls. I have been leaving them alone, though, as I know they help with the pests. I like to sit and watch them. Normally, the ones I see are about 3/4ths the size of a dinner plate.
My left arm now feels very odd and tingly and my pinky is almost completely numb and I am unable to use it. Sometimes my pinky and ring finger twitch uncontrollably. These symptoms have been getting worse at a very fast pace in the last few hours. I’ll see what some sleep will do with it. Hopefully it’s just all this reading about spiders that’s intensifying it.
I got bit in my car about 2.5 days ago by what I now believe was a spider. It was very painful, but at first I thought it may have been a mosquito, as I slapped away whatever bit me right away. I got bit right in the elbow-crook of the inside of my left arm.
It has been almost exactly 60 hours now.
Everything was fine until I woke up this morning and found the area around 2 inches of the bite is very red. The site of the bite isn’t hard, but painful at times. I also found that I am physically unable to completely straighten out my left arm. Put some peroxide on it this morning so it wouldn’t get infected. Unfortunately, I do not have medical insurance, so a trip to the doctors would not fare well on my family’s financial situation. My arm feels numb at times, and gets really warm and cold randomly, which actually started about 30 minutes ago.
I live in Florida, and know that we have some crazy bugs down here. I’m not so much concerned about what I got bit by. I’m just hoping it’s something I can dismiss and will fix itself with time. In the process of typing this message, I’m actually finding it hard to use my left arm/hand/fingers. A lot more worried now. :/
When I was 16yrs old I found a spider crossing the road at the end of our street. I thought it was a turantulla til i tried to looke it up. At that time I lived in Fort Bend county Texas and thought it was odd to see a spider like this, especially for the first time. It looked just like the pic at the top of this page, but jet black on top with grey on the side of the abdomen. It had short hair with red jaws. Not shown is the underside of the spider above but the one I found also had crimson red under its abdominal area.
It’s leg span was 5 11/16″ and body length 1 3/4″, was extremely aggressive and would run and lunge at anything and everything. One thing I thought was strange was that the “feelers” had retractable “fangs” at the end. I had never seen anything like it before or since. I haven’t found it in any book or website, but the closest now looks like the brazilian wandering spider. It did bite me while trying to get it into a jar, though, and yes it hurt very bad. The bite burned into the next day and was numb for another but never swelled and was red for only a bit.
My brother was always screwing with everything I messed with and when I wasn’t looking opened the jar. It jumped out and landed on the tile. It died the next day but to be sure it wasn’t molting I waited for a sign of life with no avail. That’s how I was able to examine and measure it. I never thought it might have been foreign but if not coming in on a boat, it sure did wander.
The banana spider is not good. the HUGE yellow and black ones who make a zigzagy “X” in the middle of their web is good.
If u live in Indiana or Ohio.. the big. Yellow and black spider is called a garden orb spider.. we have only 2 venomous spiders here.. both are the brown recluse and black widow.. if u look up the stats on the Brazilian wandering spider it is 75 percent of the time if the banana shipment came from Brazil it is the brazilian wandering spider.. if you work with banana crates and notice one. Let your manager know.. do not kill the spider unless it tries to bite you.. this spider is regarded as the most venomous spider in the world.. if it bites you seek medical attention right away.. do not wait.. it is known to be fatal in 25 minutes up to 2 hours after a bite.. also u can identify a brazilian wandering spider by 2 ways.. the defensive attack mode.. it will left up on its back legs to warn you before it attacks.. and also it is a brownish gray color.. none of the American spider look like it besides the wolf spider which is harmless and only has a bite that feels like a bee sting.. but the wandering spider is bigger in size.. I hope this helps all of you who had questions.. a quick note if you are bitten by a brown recluse seek medical attention it is known to cause death and amputation to limbs, fingers , etc..
Oh my!!!
I’m moving to another country.
to all of u out there that don’t know, the banana spider is a brazilian wandering spider. there are two different names for them.
Cool, I am VERY interested in this facsinating spider, I have also caught a non-venomous species (male) that was 2″ in leg-span, however, it was indeed aggresive. (The specimen was a Cupiennus salei.)
Hi,
Just found this article during an evenings surfing. I thought I would give my experience of Brazilian wanderers. I lived for 4 years in the North West Amazon region . During this time I encountered these spiders on numerous occasions. I have met about ten people who claim to have been bitten, and witnessed two people who had only just been bitten. Here’s my opinion and advice.
The Wanderer is hard to tell apart from many other large brown spiders without getting real close and using a field guide. They are like a skinny light brown tarantula. All of those I saw were between two and five inches across, with one notable exception which I encountered in a kitchen washroom. I swear this one was about seven or eight inches. This one, along with the first I ever saw, displayed the defensive actions of standing on its rear legs and swaying side to side in a creepy manner. The Wanderer is generally harmless if you leave them alone.
However, sometimes they can be extremely aggressive and persistent in their aggressiveness. For some unknown reason these spiders will sometimes attack humans for no apparent reason, and with extreme purpose. If they choose to attack you there is little chance you will see it coming in time to do anything. If you witness the upright swaying of a wanderer then it’s warning you off. In wanderer terms this means you have perhaps five seconds before it decides whether to attack. This is what you do if you see one doing this. Run. Get away instantly as fast as you can. Don’t try to kill it. These spiders can move faster than you can in a confined space. I have also witnessed one jump. It jumped about four feet as fast as a cricket. Run away, at least fifty feet away if in the open, or into the next room, or at least out of its vision. You really don’t want to be bitten by one of these.
Of those people I met who had been bitten most had accidentally disturbed the spider, one had actively annoyed it, and two were aggressively attacked for no known reason. All victims got ill real quick within a few minutes. Pain in the bite site first, then muscle contractions, fever, and breathlessness. One guy described it as like being jabbed with a hot poker, then having someone put his chest in a giant vice. about half the victims said they got confused and delirious after thirty minutes to two hours. All of them also described palpitations and bad dry nausea. All of these victims obviously survived. I know that five had anti venom injections, varying in time from bite between immediate and a couple of hours,but they still suffered pretty bad for about three to five days. Many of the bitten had no anti venom treatment, but varying degrees and types of symptom treatment some time after being bitten. They suffered much more, experiencing symptoms up to two weeks after. Some of the people I spoke to claimed that they had permanent health issues as a result, including hearing loss, malaria like symptoms, occasional fatigue, and in one case atrophy of the arm bitten. I don’t know if the bites caused this, but all the victims believed so, and claimed that the doctors they had consulted since being bitten also believed so.
I have heard many stories of these spiders killing people. I have only heard four stories I know are true. Two of these victims were children, one an old frail woman, and the other was a friends cousin who had asthma and apparently went into shock.
One thing I do know about wanderers is that they do not live north of Central America. Occasionally they get found in shipments of goods from their homeland. Many critters find themselves on vacation in this way. Bananas are the most well known example, But modern transportation methods for live organic goods usually kills such pests. Containers of timber, or household effects, are more likely to host these types of creature
If you work with shipments of goods from South or Central America, particularly non-refrigerated shipping containers, Then it’s always wise to take precautions should you encounter a strange beast or two.
You are more likely to be bitten by a somebodies pet lion or tiger in North America than you are a Brazilian Wanderer. This is not a joke. It’s fact.
All these comments are likely about a very harmless and beneficial spider called the banana spider here in the USA but are really garden spiders and golden orb spiders. They are yellow and get big but really help us by eating insects. If you don’t want it near your house, take a broom and brush the spider out of the web on the bush end of the broom or a long stick and carry it out to your yard and brush it off. It will go somewhere else and build a web. I left my in my carport, near my kitchen window and could watch as she caught all kinds of mosquitoes, bugs, and ate them. Unfortunately cold weather kills these beautiful and helpful spiders so if you have one, it will probably die in cold weather. Don’t kill them. Just move them if you are scared. We need to respect spiders since we would have horrible bug problems without them. Stop killing spiders.
I have a 4yr old and a 3mo old. I was walking up the steps to my front door when i saw what i think to be a ‘banana spider’ spinning around a very large bulb. It has been there for hours constantly spinning around this bulb making it bigger and bigger. I was fascinated so it took pictures and even recorded a video of it. I must admit I am a bit scared…is it dangerous? Should I fear for my daughter’s safety? Will it be aggressively protective of it’s sac? It is right by the stairs to my front door so i need to know if its friend or foe!
I too come from the SE United States, Jacksonville Florida to be exact. I think most of you from this area that see this big spider that almost everyone calls “banana spider” is most likely a golden silk spider. They are not harmful to man or woman besides some irritation to the area of the bite. I used to knock there webs down but now keep them around to catch the mosquitoes. Your first run in with them if you’ve never been to N. Fla, GA, SC can be pretty scary since you will most likely walk right into their web.
I moved to jacksonville, nc a year ago and just recently in the past few weeks have seen 4 big (I’m use to little house spiders) spiders we killed 3 of them and one of them some how got smashed in between the door. I talked to my ladlord and they said there was nothing they could do about it and the exterminator came today and I showed him one he said it was a banana spider and that they weren’t anything to worry about. I have a 2 year old and I’m also pregnant, after ready all these comments about these spiders im scared for my son and myself do any of you know what I could do? our lease is up in March and I’m scared that they will keep coming in from now til then I dont know what to do.
Oh my. I’m glad I looked up this spider. For some reason they are all around my house. They multiply like crazy and we don’t even have any bananas growing around our place nor do we have bananas. How do you get rid of these things?????
hey eddy… that aggressiveness is actually hunger. something pops into the little guys web, and he jumps it as he thinks it is prey. he wasn’t actually jumping or charging you. have a good one, enjoy these useful creepy crawlers 😉
Thanks to all these wonderful posts, I will never eat bananas or live in the south again……I am the most scared person on the face of the earth when it comes to spiders.
Rhiannon,
That is indeed a Brown Recluse Spider you shouldn’t get rid of them by yourself always use a professional that spider can kill you or cause coma
#114 I agree with you on this one. Everyone has blown this way out of shape. Everyone has a fear of some kind. My ten year old twins have a fear of spiders and we live in the country in Georgia, not good, I just want them tho know that this spider will not hurt them. We have one living with us beside our deck and she is big and beautiful. We as children growing up on the farm called them “Garden Spiders” They are beautiful and beneficial to our Eco system. They should be left alone to do what they were put here to do. Eat insects. You should be taught to respect all living things at a young age. We need to get back to that time when things weren’t so complicated. Simple life.
The black and yellow spiders that are in the large webs are orb spiders and are harmless its cracks me up with all the scare if you don’t know about a spider look it up the world is full of information about them don’t just go killing it they benefit us in killing other insects that are more harmful and those of you that have a bite go to the doctor and have them look at it
I just got off work and I was uncapping banana’s from Chiquita company and I go to lift the box and there I see a long legged spider inside the box. We stepped on the box it ran under and thought it had died, then we go to bail the box and there was no body of it on it. What’s the best way to uncap bananas without having to worry about it?
Everyone on this site that lives in the US needs to take a chill pill. Their are only 2 real poisonous spiders in the US the Black Widow and the Brown Recluse. What everyone is calling a Banana Spider is really a Garden Spider and a Golden Orb spider. These spiders build very large webs to catch insect. They are beautiful and they are a great help in killing insects such as mosquitoes, ticks, grasshoppers, crickets, termites, etc. The real banana spider is called the Brazian Wandering Spider and they live in South America. If you work in the produce business, then I would be careful around bananas that come from South America, otherwise spiders perform a great service by reducing all of the insects, so admire them, if need be from a distance.
should i be worried because im a extremely scared by spiders. and my family is in love with banana’s and im afraid they might be bitten so how could we prevent this? and how many people have been seriously effected by this (what i think is creepy and/or gross) spider??
I thought it might be of interest to people reading this to see where the Brazilian Wandering Spider/South American Banana Spider lives.
There are eight different species of the Brazilian Wandering Spider, found from Costa Rica to Northern Argentina. They have also been introduced to Uruguay.
i have 7 known ”writing spiders” or garden spiders..and 1 very large spider which i now think is the ”banana spider” i live on the coast in NC..lived in the country my whole life..seen garden spiders and always leave them be because of the huge amounts of flys they catch around the horse stable,which is a blessing..but that other spider who has dominated the space and actually quite larger then the large garden spiders really flipped me out..any time i bumped his web he came charging me…i was showing my wife and flicked a cig butt in his web, he was 2ft away but came fast as a bullet and grabbed the cig butt like it was food and turned it over and over before dropping it out his web..i will let him stay but i am still on the fence about the mixed info on their bites…he is aggressive………any educated info is welcomed to be sent to this e-mail> mojomonkeymaster [at] gmail.com
I live in Jacksonville, Florida, and suddenly about a week ago, a spider with a huge web reaching from about halfway up a tree trunk on one side, and anchored into some ferns on the other side appeared. Directly in the middle of the web is a kind of curly-cue design like an old telephone cord. The spider itself it kind of beige with darker stripes on it’s leg and body. It appears to be aggressive as it kind of follows you with it’s eyes if you walk near it. One of our landscapers held a stick near the web, and the spider got on it’s hind legs and attacked it with it’s front legs and mouth, and then jumped off the web toward the guy. He said it was a “banana spider”, and wouldn’t get rid of it for me.
I really need to know what this is because it’s near our back porch door, and my elderly mother uses that door as an entrance. She doesn’t see or walk well, so I don’t want something chasing her. Also, I suffer from MS and diabetes, and am afraid if it were to bite me, the bite would not heal and possibly cause an amputation. It also swings it’s web at you when you walk by which is creepy. Any help I can get to determine what it is would be greatly appreciated. It has doubled it’s size in one week. If it is venomous, it’s gonna have to go elsewhere, if not, it can stay and eat all the other gross bugs Florida has to offer.
Thanks so much for your help.
Last year I was bitten on my calf of my right leg. I live in Tennessee. started itching and turning red one morning when I got up. the very next day a cousin of my husband started putting a potato on the bite. After a few hours the spot where he put the potato started forming a hard, red, itchy area where the potato was. the potato was starting to turn a faded looking color and dry. After a few days it went away, but today leaves a scar the size of a quarter. Would anyone happen to know what bit me?
If you live in the central Fl are near the east coast and want to see what this spider know as the banana spider or brazilian wondering spider if you go to the Merritt Island wildlife refuge and drive the trials their or wank into any of our many orange groves you will come across them the average size is round 6in but i have seen them as big as a football but they are know to be 3 ft and i have never seen that but i would not doubt them i kill them all the time in my back yard and i have had them on me while riding my four wheeler in the woods it is scary when you see that thing on you no matter how tough you are it will freak you out so they are real and they are very common to see in FL for sure.
Madison that spider is extremely dangerous, spray yellow jacket poison on it and eggs 4 three min. be at least 1 foot away.
I really don’t care if they are poisonous or not they are really scary looking and i would have a heart attack if one ever got on me they are all over my yard and are very common here in Texas they are everywhere here.
—-To Vickie and George—-
Those are just common garden spiders. i used to go out and catch those in Georgia all the time. their bite feels somewhat like a bee sting and isn’t at all harmful. i wouldn’t suggest holding one though.
hope this helped!
Just had a a co worker at the grocery store here in California have one of these nasty “size of a rat” spiders crawl out of a banana box and onto them. Another co worker caught the bugger and after taking the species to a specialist it turns out that this spider is very deadly…glad the guy that opened the box is still okay.. get medical attention any spider in a banana box bites you!!!!
I have come across the Wandering Spider myself, having lived many years in South America. From my own personal experience, I will tell you a couple things that make this spider stand out in my experience:
a) When scared, the spider will rear up on its hind legs and warn you. It is not aggressive, but may attack you if threatened.
b) The spider can jump quite a distance. I personally saw one jump around 8 feet.
The first time you see this spider you will think it’s a tarantula. But remember what I said about it rearing up on it’s hind legs-that’s it’s trademark warning sign.
i have a spider bite on my back that looks like a target. what kind of spider is it? how will it effect me?
FOR ANYONE THAT WANTS TO KNOW HOW TO KILL A SPIDER WITHOUT GETTING CLOSE TO IT: BUY A CAN OF WASP & HORNET KILLER. THESE CANS SPRAY A JET STREAM WELL OVER 20 FEET. WASP & HORNET KILLER IS DEADLY ON EVEN LARGE SPIDERS. IT DOESN’T TAKE LONG EITHER. THEY USUALLY GO INTO TERMINAL VIOLENT SPASMS/CONVULSIONS INSIDE OF 15 SECONDS; THEN THEY FOLD UP AND DIE. REALLY LARGE SPIDERS MAY TAKE A MINUTE TO FOLD UP AND DIE; BUT WASP & HORNET KILLER IS THE BEST FOR TERMINATING SPECIFIC TARGETS. THE JET STREAM WILL REACH A SECOND STORY WINDOW OR EVEN THE GUTTER ABOVE IT.
OK so here is the issue, we live in Miami FL, close to the River were all the boats comes in. Got relative new neighbors.. huge Banana Palm fans… planted their entire back yard with them. Recently learned about these spiders and their preference for Bananas, (had a friend who had to remove all her landscaping incl. Banana palms, due to huge spiders a bit further up the coast.)
I informed the neighbors, thought they might like to know… turns out the wife studied spiders and finds them ”fascinating” … Yeaaa what the odds! Right?
– Well, so here is the issue, aside for my spider phobia …We got toddlers
NOW What? I haven’t seen any yet, but I’m not prepared to wait until Danger lurks around my children… Please help!! Anyone??? What can I do to avoid these beast? Is there any way to kill them before they appear, I never been a huge fan of pesticides, but if it comes down to the safety of my children, I will do anything it takes … please anyone, I need some serious advice here.. Thank you!!
Can someone tell me if there are Banana spiders in Jacksonville Fl.? lived there for a year in 08-09 and I would see these spiders a long the edge of the woods when I walked by. they were as big as my hand or bigger and if I put a stick up to them they would attack it something fierce. They looked exactly like bills photo.
It’s not that difficult to tell an Argiope sp. from a Phoneutria fera. One is native to N.A. and spins an enormous, conspicuous web (arboreal) while the other is native to Brasil and wanders on the ground (terrestrial). In Brasil, the males are the ones most feared since they are the ones doing the wandering in search of a mate and so often find their way into human habitats. In America, Australia or Europe it’s hardly likely that a Phoneutria fera would somehow find its way from the market to your house and put you in any danger. Far more common is the amateur arachnologist getting bitten by their beloved pet.
Furthermore, common names are highly misleading as there are several species with ‘banana’ in them. I have never heard an Argiope (golden silk weaver) called a banana spider although I guess I could see someone thinking that due to its sometimes bright yellow abdomen. With regards to their resemblance to wolf spiders, one need only take note of the colors. Wolf spiders are hardly ever brightly colored. They prefer camouflage to a threat display where as the seemingly fearless Phoneutria fera happily advertises its toxicity and will readily put on a full threat display, exposing its formidable fangs and the even brighter colored underside of its legs.
For most men, their overconfidence is a hindrance, not a help. That being said, priapism (long-lasting erection) resulting from a Phoneutria bite is often itself extremely painful and in some cases can lead to permanent impotence. On the other hand, lots of interesting research is being done on their venom and proven benefits have been shown in treating male impotency and managing pain. Let’s hope we can continue to learn from these amazing creatures all the while keeping the number of Brasileiros being bitten from getting any larger.
bill, (#44) that spider you and your wife study is not a banana spider it is a golden orb weaver,they are not aggressive and they are harmless but use caution but because i have heard they can deliver a painful but harmless bite.
banana spider is the world’s deadliest spider, believe it or not. over 3000 brazilians are bit by those spiders every year , and hundreds of them die with deaths unrecorded. these things will literally jump on u and bite u , unlike most spider that bite when disturbed banana spider will bite anytime it sees you. funny side effects from the bite is long lasting erection in guys which in most cases lead to importance, thats if the person survives.
the toxin of this spider is so venomous because it cause mucles that control the heart to collapse together with all other muscles twitching at the same time, lungs get filled with water and death is certain within 15 mins. the reason this is the most dangerous spider in the world is because it alone bites more people then all other venomous spiders combined due to dense brazilian population. also there are stories of people surving the bite, in over 60 percent of bites the spider does not inject the venom and those people are the lucky ones.
finally, the main reason this spider is the most venomous is because it requires the least amount of venom to kill a human being. it s venom is twice as potent or fast acting then a venom in american black widow.
Hope to clear up some confusion here:
The “banana spiders” that are venomous and can kill are the Brazilian Wandering Spiders. They are not indigenous to the US and occasionally found in boxes of produce from South and Central America. Just be aware of that and you should be fine.
The “banana spiders” that people see hanging near their homes or between trees are probably Orb Weavers or Golden Silk Spiders. They aren’t deadly but can deliver a painful bite. I’ve been bitten many times….I used to do a lot of trail riding (“Florida mountain biking”…hehe) when I lived in Northern Florida. These guys like to make huge webs between the trees and you occasionally run into them face first (horrible and disgusting but harmless).
U tube video of the Brazilian Wandering Spider. The first part is about Taratulas, so keep watching. Second half is about the Brazilian Wandering Spider (Not to be confused with “banana spider” which is also a nick name for an orb weaving, non threatening garden spider)
People really need to read through this stuff before they start freaking out about the garden spiders that do nothing but help kill the excess bugs around your home. They are beautiful to watch and perform a very important purpose of helping to keep flying bug populations under control.
If you don’t like where the orb weaving spiders build their webs, you can simply get a broom and knock it down or spray it down with your hose. They’ll fall to the ground and rebuild somewhere else (most likely) the next day. No reason to kill them. They are a beautiful part of God’s creation.
I’m doing a report on the Brazilian wandering spider and i have to say most of this information is false i mean a web???
its called a wandering spider for a reason on discovery channel i saw a show about them on worlds deadliest:brazil
(on of those discovery Sunday shows) so if you really think you got bitten by it your dead you really are without antivenom you would be dead in 25 minutes also if you do see a spider in a pack of bananas this is the TRUE description
The banana spider is very large and brown. It is the most venomous AND deadliest spider in the world(most potent and highest kill rate)
when threatened it will stand on its hind legs and raise its front legs high.it is extremely fast and aggressive if you are bitten who have about 30 seconds to call 911 or whatever it is in south America before intense pain hits you will also throw up in 25 minutes mentally say your prayers because your dead
My husband and I are in the process of moving. We requested boxes from a friend of ours that works at Wal – Mart in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. We received 25 banana boxes around 8 pm last night. All of these boxes say product of Honduras. This afternoon my husband complained of an area on his right calf that is itching, red and swollen with a bullseye, no white ring around this area, severe pain, nausea, chills, headache and exhaustion.
A spider bite was not our first thought of the culprit but to humor myself, I did a an internet search on poisonous spiders from the Honduras. The Brazilian Wandering Spider was the first spider that popped up. Neither of us have seen a spider in the boxes we have used so far, or in our living room where the boxes have been sitting. I do not have a picture of the affected area. Should he seek medical attention…?
I think i may have EATEN part of a spider tonite
(maybe it was the egg sac?? )
The banana which was cooked 1 min in micro with my
oatmeal felt strange in my mouth so i looked & it was
a,hard,dark,ugly piece, about 1/2 inch in length. After
reading this site, I went to ER & showed the doctor. He
said he’d never sen anything like it. He called Poison
Control & they said ‘if it was a spider I ate, my stomach
acid would take care of it.’ It’s been nearly 3 hrs since
that mysterious portion was consumed. No symptons.
Should i be concerned ? Thanks (MawMaw)
There are literally millions of spider species around the world. The VAST majority are not harmful to humans and anyway, and are actually a great benefit. In the US only a few spiders are deadly, the black widow, and the brown recluse are the most common reported spider bite. Even these are rarely fatal. Please when you see a spider just ignore it, it’s getting rid of all the REAL dangerous bugs, the ones that spread disease, mosquitos, flys, ticks, etc. One spider can eat hundreds of insects a day, so each spider you kill your inviting thousands of other bugs into your home.
The Banana Spider is aggressive. I threw a bud from a tree into the web and it immediately grabbed it and in seconds threw it out of the web. The Banana Spider has a Toxic bite but does not affect the immune system as the Black Widow but has the same venom. It is capable of delivering a very vicious and painful bite.
banana spiders are cool and dangerous and very fast i need to be careful
I live in Louisiana and we have a Golden Orb Silk Spider in our backyard as well. I’ve done some research on these spiders and the one we have is a female. She’s pretty harmless. They say if she bites, it will be a little worse than a wasp sting, but she’s not poisonous. I think her web is absolutely fascinating!
This is a really good resource page you have. I live here in Mobile, Alabama. These spiders are everywhere and i have always been told they were dangerous but never thought like this. Thanks for the welcoming Info on a VERY UNWELCOMING LAWN GUEST!
I live in rural Mississppi and I have golden orb-web spiders in my yard frequently. Right now there are 3 or 4 different webs. I enjoy watching them. They are beautiful and there webs are, too. If you look closely, the much smaller male is usually there, too. Enjoy nature and respect it!
This spider is outside my sliding window. What can I do to get it away from my home. I am scared!!
Agreed cargojack (#82)
I live in Deerfield, and at Bnai Torah (just off 18th street and something else) I saw a golden orb weaver (banana spider), it was so cool! Absolutely huge.
By the way, peoples who are saying, oh i live in FL and i see banana spiders in forests all the time, and if you get bitten go to a hospital, its the golden orb weaver, and it is not to be confused with the Brazilian Wandering spider, which IS the one you should go to the hospital for.
A friend of mine andher sonlive with us andhe is all into bugs,any and all bugs. Yesterday he caught a banana spider here in GA. He also caught some other type of spider. It is bigger than a quarter in size, has a huge belly and is brown. Unfortunately,he put them both in the same jar and now the banana spider is dead. I believe the aggresor is the fiddle back,hencea fiddle on the back. Based on what I have read here, I guess the other spider needs to meet i’s demise.The little boy will not stop putting his hand in the jar to add fresh leaves, bugs, and whatnot. Probably not a good idea at all.
If Ya’ll think these spiders are creepy and yucky…checkout the camel spider..good grief!
I live in Boca Raton, in zipcode 33431, and I have seen DOZENS of these spiders in trees around here. They make their webs strung between trees and branches about 8-12 feet above the ground. The largest I have seen is about as big as my hand from leg to leg, but the thorax part seems to be as big as the first two joints of my pinkie.
Yes, we saw hundreds of banana spiders today! Totally freaked me out. They have built webs that span from one side of the road across to the other and as you drive through its a canopy of spider webs and spiders. Its in this park in Florida called John Henry Birch State park off of Sunrise Blvd. and right off the ocean in Fort Lauderdale.
I wouldn’t go on the walking trail if you PAID ME!!! There are hundreds and hundreds of banana spiders larger than the size of my hand. A woman came out of the park screaming today.
I’ve emailed photos of what these spiders look like.
AC
yes it is a banana spider!!
I just moved to Myrtle Beach, SC and have a Banana Spider in my backyard. She keeps moving her web; sometimes every day. I have seen the male (only 1/2″ long) in her web and assume they have mated by now. There is always a white zig zag enhanced part of her web that goes directly to the middle. Does anyone know what this is? Also how many babies will she have? Are they year round dwellers, or do they leave in winter?
Don D #63: Don…. your sounding quite racist towards Southerners there…? but you make some very good points 🙂
I’m from the UK so we don’t get this kinda thing! Most we got is wasps and some spider related to the black widow but is pretty much harmless, like a bee sting for a bite and that only lives in one particular area of the UK (Dorset)
But yeah I read about the Brazilian Wandering Spider as a young boy and think only there was only one recorded death from an adult and the venom can kill you within 6 hours, so yeah not nice =/
I live in florida and spend a considerable amount of time in the woods and i can tell you there are lots of banana spiders around and you do not want to mess with them if you get bit consult a doctor asap.
We live in Columbia, South Carolina and this morning there was a huge web across our front steps, from railing to railing, and creating this web was a HUGE banana spider. We don’t even have bananas in the house! Where could it have come from? BTW – the stairway was clear last night so this web was created in about 7 hours
The picture of number 44 on the list. These spiders are every where and I am a landscaper so should I worry about them or just leave them. I say if they dont bother you dont bother them.
So if i go to Rio d Janairo and spend like a year there. What are my chances for meeting monsters like these? I can deal with big dogs n stuff but spiders just scare the living daylights outta me. I plan to live in a concrete appartment as high as possible (and bring a few flamethrowers)
I have three different place that I got bit on and in each spot there are three bite inside the bites
Anybody know what kind of spider this is?
The “banana “spiders, all of them, are TOTALLY DIFFERENT IN SIZE from
the Brown Recluse. You can get info. from any Web search engine such
as Google – and the Brown Recluse is EXTREMELY SMALL. The entire spider’s leg
span is the size of a quarter, and the body is only 3/16″ wide and
3/18” long.
Heather –
On May 1, 2009 – I was vacationing and noticed a bullseye bite on my left collar bone for which the center of the bullseye was a pinkish-red lump and it ended up going away in about 3-4 days. I never saw what bit me – however. while vacationing I was at the hotel pool and we went to a zoo as well. As the bullseye was going away, a faint blackish-grey line appeared in the middle of the lump inside the outer ring of the bullseye. A few days later, I started getting tired and had strange back pain, and felt nauseous. About a week after the bite, I had vertigo-like symptoms, leg pain twitching and pinching, dizziness, cold-like symptoms, knee and ankle swelling, and shortness of breath – like my chest is heavy and tight. I am being treated by numerous doctors, including an infectious disease expert and an expert neurologist. They have been able to rule out Lyme Disease because I was given an advanced antibody titer test. They have done so much work-up on me and the results are always negative but my symptoms have not gone away and seem to be worsening. I am fearful that I may have gotten bitten by a spider and that my doctors are missing the ball on this one. If anyone has any info or has heard of similar symptoms – please write – I am desperate. P.S. Are there specific tests that can check for black widow/spider bites???????????????
Replying to Vickie (#36), I would be worried because the spiders are in the bananas and the bananas are from south america.
Just a thought, Jonathan. 🙂
# 14 is a garden spider
Hi,
I live in Brazil (Rio). I’ve caught some spiders at home. I often catch 4 or 5 a week.
The attachment files shows banana spiders. These colors are different because they were inside alcohol.
Regards,
Douglas Araújo
My dad came home from work today and complained about having gotten bit by something or backed into a cactus, he doesn’t know. But he said that it aches like after wen you slam your finger in the door wen he doesn’t move it. and wen he moves his finger it hurts super bad. Really bad. My dad is really stubborn about going to the emergency so i haven’t been able to convince him yet. their seems to be a bite mark or maybe a stab wound from a cactus.
He says he got it around 2:00 and it has gotten worse his finger. But since hes a meter reader he has all sorts of stuff bite and poke him. He had gotten stabbed with jumping cactus(which is a plant) and had a reaction to it. What should we do.
i think that the banana spider is sooooo kool
To Jack T. #61.
You are just the person I’m looking for! A pest professional! My husband and I moved to Texas a few years ago (what were we thinkin’)….anyway, when I heard that there are a lot of brown recluse spiders out here, I did what I always do. I did research…tons of it. I tried to educate myself about brown recluse so that if/when I came across one I could identify it.
So, month after month…any spider I came across I would swoop it up and put it in a container “to study”….Nope not a brown recluse….good….well one day last year I was cleaning out a rubbermaid box (no lid) and happened to notice this bug…long story short, yes it was a brown recluse. Caught 5 in a two week period. Have found probably 12-15 more since then, most recently a couple of weeks ago….a baby one in my bathroom!
So my question to you is….PLEASE, how do I kill these things. My husband is very non-challant about the whole thing…I’ve read that spraying insecticide only kills other spiders and that keeps the brown relcluse fat and happy. I’ve ordered and set up the sticky type traps, and have caught a few…but I want to be a little more proactive….Husband does not want to call in an exterminator….DANG! I would appreciate ANY advice or words of wisdom on this subject asap. I’m tired of sleeping with the lights on or staying up all night 🙁 Thanks in advance….sleepless in Texas!
Here is an excellent example of a Brazilian wandering spider, the worlds deadliest spider, found in a box of bananas . A bite from this guy and you’ll be drooling within a few minutes and shut down your entire system (dead) within 25 minutes.
This spider hid in the box all the way from Honduras to Tulsa, Oklahoma.
http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/health/2009/03/19/loren.deadly.spider.in.fruit.kotv
I just found this website and find it very interesting. I am a pest professional, here in Arizona, and I would like to offer a little help to those concerned about the Brown Recluse Spider, a.k.a. the fiddleback spider. Often, my customers are confusing the wolf spider with the brown recluse. The easiest way to identify the brown recluse spider is by looking for a dark image in the shape of a violin or fiddle. This image will be seen on its cephalothorax (its back) with the bottom of the fiddle near its head and the neck of the fiddle extending toward the end of the cephalothorax. Keep in mind that if you think you have been bitten by one, you will definitely know it. At the first, you will feel something like a pin prick. Soon, the area will redden and swell. Eventually, the skin may appear to be hardening around the sore. If left unattended, the bite mark area will begin to develop an ulcer and the skin in the area will begin to decompose. Of course, other symptoms may appear: fever, shivering, nausea, and vomiting. Medical attention should be sought asap if you think you have been bitten by one.
The Wolf Spider is a hunting spider which resembles a tarantula more than a brown recluse, in my opinion. It has a stout body, has two large jaw-like mouthparts in front, has two large eyes facing forward, flanked by two large eyes facing upward, and a row of four small eyes below. They do not use a web, but wait for their prey and then capture them, bite them, and crush them with their powerful mouthparts. They are venomous but are usually non-lethal. It’s best to stay away from them.
One last thing: the brown recluse spider and the hobo spider are not the same spider. the hobo spider is known for its chevron markings on its abdomen; the brown recluse for its violin-shaped image on its cephalothorax.
did anybody here about the Brazilian wandering spider found in a store in the produce section
Can someone tell me what kind of spider this is and if its poisonous or not. I didn’t kill it or anything but maybe I should have??
I would like to convey a message to the owners of this site… Okay, You guys really should not have used the term “Banana Spider” to describe the Brazilian Wandering spider AKA South American Bird Spider. (Also related the the Aussie variant…
Now you have a lot of confused people. “Banana Spider” is used for The Yellow Sac, The Golden Orb, What those Okies were calling a “Garden Spider (Another widely used term in it’s self) But we in Texas call a Banana Spider or writing spider.
Perhaps you should make a special page that shows the many different spiders that are referred to as Banana Spiders. And give a better description of the leathal one you are trying define here…
The Spider in this site is not a “True Spider”.. The Spiders that you people are calling Banana Spiders (And you are all right as this term in generic) Are mostly True Spiders. Meaning that they sit in a web and Fish for their prey.. Then Wandering Spider is a Hunter/Ambush spider more closer to a tarantula than what you guys are confusing for it.
I have never seen a banana spider. B4 I lived in lynchburg va. But any one have a really good pic of one if so I would like to see it. I’m very interested in. Banana spiders. Thank you
~ diamond Amanda
To whom it may concern:
I’ve read that a female nurse that was bitten by a banana spider and ended up being severely depressed afterward.
Is it really possible for a person to end up with depression after being bit by a spider? Is this condition temporary or permanent? I saw this among the comments of the Brazilian Banana Spider!
i was wondering of somebody could help me. I have this very very very big banana spider in front of my window, but I am on the second story of my house, do you know how i can kill it?
A small sting
Deadly!
I am sorry I do not have a photo, but I work at the Commissary at Scott Air Force Base, IL. I work in the produce department and we found a Brazilian Wandering Spider in a case of bananas. It was dead, but we put it in a jar and kept it anyway. A day or two later we found another one and this one was alive. The guy that was stocking the bananas killed it right away, but it really makes me nervous to stock bananas now. If I have to I am very careful when picking up the boxes and very carefully pull the bananas out. We have not seen one now for about three weeks, and hopefully we will not. I have one bit of advice for anyone that works with produce……watch out for the spider.
I was bit by a banana spider while living in Okinawa, Japan in 1985. I was in 5th grade. I didn’t ever see the spider, but noticed my arm was red, swollen, and hot to the touch. My dad took me to the hospital, where I was told I was bitten by a banana spider. The dr. put me on antibiotics and I was fine, but very lethargic for the next couple days.
Bill #44, that is actually a Golden Orb Silk Weaver. Orb Weavers are usually reluctant to bite. Symptoms of an Orb Weaver bite is mild local pain, numbness and swelling. Occasionally nausea and dizziness can occur after a bite. Humped Orb Weavers have very small fangs and they are timid and reluctant to bite.
vickie #12: i used to go to my grandmas wen i was a kid and she used to find that exact spider in her rose bushes. she always called them banana spiders and would catch them in a jar and give to us for science projects, i dont know the technical term, but thats what we would always call them
Here is a a picture of an egg sac and a banana spider guarding it.
Heyy guys!
You see my brother has a banana spider near our cats litter box outside. Ok so anyways, he is like super scared. Can we kill the spider with a shoe or do we have to kill it by like an exterminator? Because he will not clean that thing up. He is way to scared!
Well so what do I do? Do i call for help of just kill it with a shoe???
plz help me!
This is the uglyest spider. I am so terrified of spiders. They are the most uglyest things in the world.
YUKK!!!!
Also, there is something else about Banana Spiders, that I would like to add. The photo may be of a species common to most small spiders.
However, I have learned, that th worlds bigest spider, is the banana spider. They can be upto the ize of a dinner plate; and the people of South America, often have to use 12-gage shot guns to harvest the bananas. They said that the speed forrunningpeople off can be anywere up to 1-2 miles an houur, but not LTD to that. Top speed is unknown.
he natives down in South America, will often times, if forced to shoot them; cook them andmake a meal out of them, for everyone to enjoy. Don’t ask why, but LOL they say it tastes like chicken too. Now, whether this is fact, or fiction; is uncertain. But I will take the wordof the villagers, who have made their reports, till i am proven wrong otherwise.
I have a spider in my backyard that looks like the #12 picture. I live in Oklahoma and i have a VERY small dog. If the spider bites me or my dog should i be worried??? I am very scared, because the spider has eggs and I don’t want them in my house! Will they be a problem?PLEASE answer soon!
Madison
Attached is a pic of “our” banana spider. She has made her home near our porch and my wife and I keep track of her daily. Her web catches many insects.
We have two English Setters that often take down one side of her web while playing but she has, so far, rebuilt it in the same spot. We are not worry about her as she is a N. American banana spider. We think of her as beneficial in controlling the insect population as a garden spider.
Thanks,
Bill
i just moved to ocala florida from new york and there are big nasty banana spiders every where outside in my yard this stuff is starting to freak me out i am not familiar with this type of enviroment, i even killed some huge brown spiders in the house five of them, i am scared to turn the lights off at night!
I am now 71 years old, but all my life I have carefully removed the very ends of bananas I eat – because when I was in my teens I worked for a short time at a fruit terminal in San Antonio, Texas and the person that taught me how to move fruit around for distribution told me to be very careful with the bananas because of potential spiders and their eggs. He said the spider bite had very toxic venom and the eggs could be ingested and cause serious issues. That stuck with me and I put it aside, but have always removed the very ends of the banana before eating it. If you notice, many bananas have a dark area right at the end. He was taught that this end should be avoided.
I’m doing a report about banana spider.I want to learn about them.
uh none of the spiders under the listing of banana spider are actually banana spiders. they are long and sleder with yellow, black and violet on them and can get up to 7 in in length.
I have a banana spider in my back yard and do not plan to kill it or touch it. I did know someone who was diabetic that got biten by a brown recluse spider. He had a lot of trouble and ended up with a part of his foot removed, which is where the spider bite was. If you even think you were biten by a spider, I would advise seeing a doctor just to be on the safe side. Those bites can be leathal.
Madison (#2) I think you’re wrong. I live in Okinawa, Japan, and they were all over my kids trampoline!
vickies spider in picture # 12 looks like nothing more than a common garden spider see all over down south. I found one in Virginia that was in a field of high grass and weeds that’s web was easily 10 feet accross and the spider itself was probably 8 inches from the tip of one leg to the other. it’s body was about 2 inches long and a little less than an inch wide. we used a dollar bill to estimate it’s width, a dollar being 6″ accross.
i work at a grocery store, and we recently have had a decent amount of spiders in and around the storage areas of the stores. we know that they have come from our recent shipments of bananas from south america. does this mean that they are the Brazilian Wandering Spiders? if so, should we be concerned?
I have had the same thing happen to me as Sally! (#27) – if anyone could answer that could be great! I keep finding these baby spiders in my pots and pans and I’m scared what they are going to grow up to be! They are black with an orange tinge if that helps!!
Rhiannon
that is not a bannana spider or one of those brown whatever there called. whatever it is hire a PROFESSIONAL to get rid of them, but DO NOT try to do it yourself. Better safe than sorry.
I found this spider outside of my front door with hundreds of baby spiders with it. I was told it was a female banana spider and I was told it was a female brown recluse. I would really like to know if it is dangerous or if I should be concerned about the babies that are now probably in my rock wall. Help me please. I have sent a photo to the e-mail provided and I hope it makes it to this page.
For those of you describing spider bites: Most all of you are describing the results of the bite of either a brown recluse or a hobo spider. These spiders typically infest out-of-the way places (like a garage or storage area), or a drawer (such as your pajama drawer). I have seen several of these bites, and all were as described in your comments. I would suggest you seek medical care. These spiders’ venom causes tissue necrosis or death, and can be very dangerous.
And as far as I know, all spiders are carnivorous and eat other living things. I have read that the South American banana spider actually eats small birds!
Also, the wolf or funnel spider of Australia is extremely venomous and aggressive.
Vickie, trust me, i am a interjection profestof the archafadite at the desert county of gerorgia and that is a garden spider, it will not hurt you unless you trap it in your shoe or any clothes for that matter and it feels trapped or cornered. do not attempt to pick up the spider but you can just kill it of some how.
Hi I know this has nothing to do with the Banana spider but I’m hoping you might answer anyway. Is it true that no matter where you are in life there is always a spider at least 5 feet away from you? I’m pretty paronoid right now so if u could answer soon that would be great.
Thanks,
Ellie
Ian, I thought the very same thing, the spider at the top look exactly like the wolf spider EXCEPT for the red fangs. We have the wolf spiders here in Ohio, they get real big and are fast and very smart. They are related to tarantulas. I had one in my kitchen, and my cat was going after it and this spider raised up on its hind legs after my cat! They are not afraid of people (or cats) he ended up as a pancake spider! lol
I am doing a project in my computer class and I cannot find out what banana spiders eat! I have looked on basically every website I could find. If someone could tell me, I would appreciate it! Thanks, Taylor.
Hi
I have just opened a pack of bananas from the Dominican Republic and found a white woven sac on one of them, thought it might be a spider sac so opened it up with the point of a knife and lots of little spiders ran out. I panicked a bit and ended up disposing of them with a lighter – cruel I know, but I am arachnophobic and it was almost an automatic response. Anyone know what spiders these might be from DR?
When I was real little I found a large spider(fit in palm of hand)It was mostly black with a single Yellow stripe (LIKE what a wood bee has) It was slightly fuzzy (Like a tarantula) At that time I lived close to a city market. (Indianapolis, Indiana)
I took a jar and scooped the spider with a stick into the jar. I put insects in the jar but it wouldn’t eat them so I took it to a teacher that taught earth science. He told me it was a fruit spider. They are poisonous if they bite, but they only bite when they feel threatened. The spider loved bananas.
Has anyone seen this spider close to them? I would like to know the actually name of this spider.
i found a white sac on the side of a banana. it looked like a woven spiders nest. i am very curious about this and would like to know what kind of spider layed the eggs on the banana
I found a fuzzy egg sac attached to a banana, should I still eat it?
My mom just went to eat a banana, and noticed a huge (about 4cm long), hard, pod shaped thing attached to a banana! We think it might be a spider egg, but we aren’t sure. We’ve been looking all over for pictures of what a spider egg might look like, but can’t find anything! Have you seen anything like this before, and if you have, what does it look like? Thanks!
I like to eat banana spiders, all the time!!!!!! spiderrs rule!
I work in a grocery store in the bay area, in northern California. I was stocking DOLE banana’s from Ecuador, and one of these banana spiders crawled on my hand really fast and fell on the rest of the banana’s. I was freaked out because i had no warning that the Banana Spider even exists. Though i was lucky,and did not get bit…What if a kid were to say, “hey banana’s” grab some and one of these nasty spiders bit them. It freaked me out and i have to stock banana’s everyday in the produce department. Please leave comments if you’d like !!
PLease anyone with a picture of an egg sack from a banana spider please notify me!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have two toddlers in my house and found a sack on my bananas. My husband said he killed a baby and and I am freaked out that there are more in my house.
I found a spider in Australia which looks exactly like the Banana (Brazilian Wandering/Phoneutria) Spider (at the top of the page) . The museum in Brisbane (here) says that it is a wolf spider, however in my research I cannot tell them apart. Does anyone know how to tell the difference? (or is the picture here incorrect) I will get a picture and add it (except right now I cannot see how to add it)
Brazilian wandering spider’s bite is very painful and can be deadly rush to the nearest hospital. They are called banana spiders because they sometimes are shipped on banana ships all over. Make sure you ask where the bananas you bought are from.
This spider (Vickie’s photo) is also known as a “banana spider” not to be confused by another of the same name which is the brazilian wandering spider–it’s bite is extremely painful and toxic; though the bite should receive medical treatment.
its called a golden silk spider not a very painful bite and not deadly and threaten put in a jar and throw it out but if u distroy the web it will rebuiled
its web i have been bit by one and i read about this spider alot
the picture above is a garden spider and is nothing to woory about they are nice and are not easily threatened so its okay i used to feed them at my grandfathers house
In response to Vickies question (#12) about the spider she found by her trailer, it is a garden spider sometimes called a orb spider. I live in Oklahoma and they are very common here. They are harmless and non agressive however they might bite if you grabbed it…lol But they are not considered poisonous, they actually help to rid your garden or yard of other insects!
I just got bit by a banana spider today and I was wondering if i should worry about it? Are they really dangerous? I have burning in bite area and it is really red and swelling.
I was walking into my trailer the other day and as i was walking toward the steps, I noticed a Huge Spider under the steps. I backed away immediately, called my husband to look at this big big spider. He said he didn’t know what kind it was but he didn’t like it. I went inside and got my digital camera out and took a picture of it and sent the picture to my daughter who said it looked like a banana spider.
I have attached the picture above in hopes that someone can help identify this spider which is still there under my steps! I am afraid to get too near it..lo!
Please, if you have any idea what type of spider this is, please let me know.
Thanks!
About 2 weeks ago i got a little bump behind my leg, i first thought it was a ingrown hair or mosquito bite. over a period of 24 hours it swelled up and became extremely inflamed. A black center imerged and about .5cm in diameter. I could feel how the pain was spreading over my leg. I went to a Doctor and he suggested it was a absis. How do i know what it was, was it a Banana Spider?
just wondering about some bananas i brought they seem to have a silk like stuff on them with a hard pod in the middle. there is no sign of a spider do i need to be worried !!
this site is amazing i could read on for hours.
Just wanted to make a comment, there is a difference between the common North American spider called the Golden silk spider, or Banana Spider and the Brazilian Wandering Spider, also called the Banana Spider.
The North American version is huge, with legs it can be the size of an adult’s hand. The body is bright yellow and the shape resembles a banana of sorts. It’s relatively non-harmful and non-aggressive.
The one from Brazil is very dangerous and can result in death from a bite. Although death is rare, the bite is extremely painful and will take several days to over a week to recover. The Brazilian wandering spider usually has a black or gray fuzzy head and a dark brown thorax. Their bodies are up to an inch in length and three inches with legs. They have been known to make it into the US from Brazil on shipments of bananas, hence the name.
They are extremely fast and incredibly aggressive. If you believe that you have been bit by this South American spider, I would recommend seeing medical attention immediately.
Wow. That is amazing. I have gotten bit by one of these banana spiders and never had no clue.
I have 2 beautiful female banana spiders in my backyard. Can anyone tell me what the big brown pods are that hang next to the webs? One spider has one pod, the other has two. Please reply. Thanks! Diana
I can’t send a photo, wish I could. I’ve had these bites for about three weeks and they are persistant. They itch like crazy and in the beginning were red and hard. First, I felt the itch and I knew it was a spider bite. Location, inside thigh left leg. I’ve been bitten before by the same kind of spider when I was living in North Carolina. Unfortunately I smashed that spider into a pancake and the more recent spider got away without me seeing it.
This always happens at at night and I know it is the same because it itches like crazy, swells, gets bigger and bigger and the skin around it get’s little blisters in a 2 inch radius, but I have some good news on how to calm the redness and the itching while the bite takes it’s course, apple cider vinegar! It is so good. I soak a gause bandage or cloth and put it on the bite for at least 30 mins. It doesn’t make the bite go away but it calms it down. This must be done at least twice a day for daily relief.
Make sure you keep the area clean and use an antibotic ointment while the bite does it’s own thing. So far, so good. If the leg starts rotting off I’ll let ya’ll know. Just kidding, but us spider bite folks know how this thing goes and it doesn’t go fast.
Any natural remedies out there would be greatly appreciated. I did not find out about the vinegar until several days after the bite, but it is working. Thank God!
I really like your website and I urge all your visitors to be careful of these banana spiders because it is easy to be bit by one. These spiders may look sweet to some people but they can produce much damage; trust me on this, my grandfather’s friend has 20 of these spiders and he got bit once so be careful. You would not want to go through the pain my grandfather when through!
Wow, I didn’t know all this and my step dad has been bitten before by the banana spider, very horrible things, aren’t they?
We live here in the ozarks and last week my husband and I were out in the garage cleaning. I came inside and felt something biting me in the small of my back. I yelled at my husband, “I think something’s biting me”. When I pulled my shorts open I saw twi fabric labels and just assumed that they had scratched me. Later I felt a terrible burning and my left side and all down my hip and buttocks started to swell up.
It stayed like that for over a week. The spider apparently bit me several times because I have about 8 or 9 sores in a small area. The bites are very dark red and burn like their on fire. I don’t remember having any other symptoms. I’ve been treating it with antibiotic ointment and bandages but it doesn’t seem to be in a hurry to heal.
So these things are in Brazil? Am I not correct?
Does anyone have any data on how people, who have had a serious bite such as the Banana Spider, recuperate? Any unusual physical or psychological problems. I’m particularly interested in someone, who was seriously ill secondary to bite, then, developing a difficult to treat depression, that was not previously a problem for the person.
I’ve looked @ lots of sites, but, there doesn’t seem to be any treatment, except for antitoxin and treatment of necrosis. I have a friend, who had a serious bite, who subsequently, during medical recup, developed a terrible depression. As a psychiatric nurse, I find the serotonin connection interesting. (He’ll be providing the Dr w/ this info.) Anyway, just wondering if anyone has an experience/anecdotes. Thanks.