Avondale spider
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| Delena cancerides Walckenaer, 1837 |
The Avondale spider is a large, brown huntsman spider originally found in the Avondale area of New Zealand, and its range now extends into the Waitakere area.
[edit] Habitat and appearance
The spiders will co-exist socially, and are often found under loose bark and in woodpiles in colonies up to 300. They hunt their food rather than spin webs for it. Though non-poisonous to humans, they can strike great fear into the mildest arachnophobes, and it is just as well that they seldom venture indoors.
They are an Australian species, accidentally introduced to New Zealand in early 1920s in shipments of hardwood logs used for railway sleepers. The first specimen was found in 1924. Since the spiders' territory expansion did not reach beyond Avondale throughout most of the time they have been living there, the arachnids were then given their current popular name after the Auckland suburb.
The original species is quite common in South Australia.
The body of the spider may be up to 30mm long, is light brown and covered in dense, fine hairs. The legs are also hairy, and can span up to 200mm (8"). Large specimens are not unusual.
[edit] Avondale spiders in fiction
- Avondale spiders achieved fame in the 1990 movie Arachnophobia which used 374 of these impressive spiders.
- A brief appearance by an avondale spider appears at the beginning of the 2002 movie Spiderman
- In the Xena: Warrior Princess episode "Motherhood", Eve holds an Avondale spider.
