Two sisters had a close encounter with a highly venomous spider not often seen by humans in the Blue Mountains over the weekend.
The arachnid is a red-headed mouse spider and believed to be a female, which is said to be as potentially dangerous as the Sydney funnel-web.
“Yuck, that is making me sick,” a voice can be heard off-screen.
Jefferson told 9news.com.au she was hiking with her sister near Bilpin on Saturday when they encountered the striking spider.
“It was unreal to see,” she said.
“It was so unfazed by our presence and all I could focus on was its red head and big fangs.
“You can actually listen to the video and hear how my sister felt about it.”
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The Australian Museum said female red-headed mouse spiders can produce “copious amounts of a highly toxic venom, which is potentially as dangerous as that of the Sydney funnel-web spider”.
With that said, bites are very rare as females tend to remain in, or near, their burrows.
“Funnel-web spider antivenom has proved effective in the one confirmed case,” Australian Museum added.
The Australian Reptile Park confirmed the two spiders are distinct species.
“Funnel-webs and mouse spiders do have some similar physical characteristics but they’re technically not in the same ‘family’ – funnel-webs are in the Atracidae family and mouse spiders are Actinopidae,” a spokesperson said.
Any bite from a big, black spider should be treated the same way as a snake bite.
A pressure-immobilisation bandage should be applied around the affected limb and wound, and urgent medical attention sought.
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