ipod slayer - gift contained black widow spider
WHEN Kirsty Munro gave her husband Fraser the Christmas present he had dropped so many hints for she knew he would be delighted.
Instead the office manager recoiled in shock after unwrapping his expensive new speaker system to find the unwanted gift of a deadly Black Widow spider.
As the 43-year-old opened the portable sound dock for his iPod the venomous spider scuttled towards him.
Mr Munro confirmed its species through the internet and calmly enticed it into the box. Not thinking it was an emergency the couple kept the spider at their home in East Hermitage, Midlothian, for two days before the Scottish SPCA arrived.
Experts believe the spider – christened Mrs Boris by the Frasers – hitched a 5,000 mile ride from Mexico where the speakers are made by manufacturers Bose.
It made my wife jump
Mr Munro said: “It made my wife jump, but I’m not scared of spiders. I took one look and thought I knew what it was.
“I noticed the markings on its body, and checked on the internet that it was a Black Widow.
“We put it back in the box, wrapped it in cling film and made a few air holes.
“A couple of days later we called out the Scottish SPCA.”
The bite of a Black Widow – so named because the female eats the male after sex – can cause agonising muscle and chest pains, tremors and vomiting.
Its venom is 15 times more potent than that of rattlesnakes.
Although, when diffused through the body of a healthy, mature human, it is not usually fatal, there were 63 deaths in the US between 1950 and 1990. The Munros’ festive visitor is thought to be a Western Black Widow, a common inhabitant of Mexico, recognised by its dark colour and red hourglass pattern on its underbelly.
It was taken to the Edinburgh Butterfly and Insect World and is now on view to the public.
Scottish SPCA ambulance driver Mairi Stewart said: “It was a very unusual call-out and exciting to see it up close.
“I was relieved to find it was well contained. We advise against handling any creatures found in packages or foodstuffs from abroad.”
No one was available for comment from Bose!
