Recluse spiders 'must be left alone'

The newly-discovered spider is about the size of a one-baht coin. (Photos by Patipat Janthong)

A veterinarian on Thursday said the venomous Mediterranean recluse spiders found in a Kanchanaburi cave would not harm humans just as long as people left the insect alone.

Manoj Yindee of the Faculty of Veterinary Science at Mahidol University, Kanchanaburi Campus, said there were two groups of venomous spiders in Thailand: widow spiders and recluse spiders. Neither was aggressive and preferred to hide in quiet, dark and dry places. So the Mediterranean recluse spiders would not pose a danger to tourists or avid cavers unless they invaded their habitats and tried to search or catch them.

A Chulalongkorn University doctoral student on Wednesday publicly displayed the Mediterranean recluse spiders, which were found in a cave in Kanchanaburi's Sai Yok district. The poisonous arachnids are the first ever spotted in Thailand. They are thought to have entered Thailand when Japanese soldiers came to build the "Railway of Death" during World War II.

The cave where the species was found is in an area supervised by the agriculture and cooperatives division under the Armed Forces Development Command. A Bangkok Post reporter, who was refused permission to visit the cave, was told that division chief Col Daecha Panthamit would hold a press conference regarding the discovery of the Mediterranean recluse spiders on Friday.

A bite from a Mediterranean recluse, a spider related to brown recluses, is known to destroy skin and underlying fat. However, Mr Manoj said spider bites were actually rare occurrences and most could hardly penetrate human skin, and caused only a mild reaction.

For first aid care for most spider bites, Mr Manoj suggested the bitten area be washed with water and then a cold compress or ice pack wrapped in a cloth applied to help relieve the pain.

He said the discovery of the Mediterranean recluse spiders would help scientists learn more about their nature and lead to conservation and sharing space between animals and humans



