Redback Spider
Latrodectus hasselti
Potent Neurotoxic Venom
The female's venom is a powerful neurotoxin that attacks the nervous system, causing severe and radiating pain, sweating (often localized to the bite area), muscle weakness, nausea, and headaches.
Sperm Storage
After a single mating, a female can store the sperm for up to two years and use it to fertilize multiple batches of eggs over that time.
Sexual Dimorphism
There is extreme sexual size difference; the female's body is about 10 mm long, while the male is a tiny 3-4 mm long and light brown with white markings.
Field notes
| Range | Australia; introduced to New Zealand and Japan |
|---|---|
| Lifespan | Females two to three years |
| Size | Female about 10 mm; male 3 to 4 mm |
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Colour | Female jet black with a red stripe; male light brown |
| Diet | Insects, and at times small lizards |
| Family | There is only one species, Latrodectus hasselti |
In the book
The Redback Spider is number 13 of the 101 creatures in Glowing Bugs. Its two pages show it from three sides, at its true size, with a map of where it lives. The plate is an artistic interpretation and does not show the true colours of the living animal.
