A Funnel Web spider is pictured at the Australian Reptile Park January 23, 2006 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo : Getty Images/Ian Waldie)
Australia has a long list of terrifying creatures that can send shivers down anyone's spine, be it deadly snakes, man-eating crocodiles or killer great white sharks. Now, there is one more to add the list; a giant mouse-eating spider.
A video of a huge Australian huntsman spider dragging a dead mouse up a fridge has gone viral on social media. The footage of the unusually large arachnid, named Hermie, has already garnered more than 16 million hits on Facebook.
Jason Womal, a tradesman from the central Queensland town of Coppabella, captured the video of the enormous creature at his neighbor's house. Womal was just about to head out for work when his neighbor called him over to see the eight-legged-creature dragging its prey up the outside of a refrigerator.
Womal wasted no time and started filming the spider's feat before sharing the video on social media. Australia is home to more than 94 species of Huntsman spiders and range in size from less than an inch to six inches across, according to National Geographic.
Although Huntsman spiders are not considered dangerous to people, they are venomous creature and are capable of inflicting a painful bite. The diet of this particular species mainly comprises of insects such as cockroaches and crickets but they have been known to devour prey as large as mice.
Graham Millage, manager of the Australian Museum's arachnology collection, told The Guardian that while it is unusual for spiders to hunt vertebrates, it is not unheard of. "This is the first time I've seen one catch a mouse, but I have seen huntsmen catch geckos," said Millage. "I've seen a redback spider catch a snake in its web, I've seen a golden orb spiders catch birds."
Check out Hermie, social media's latest viral sensation, in the video below:
