Is there an asbestos-contaminated tarantula on the loose in Cardiff?
In a story worthy of Arachnophobia, a routine survey by asbestos specialists has sparked fears there could be a large contaminated tarantula on the loose in Cardiff.
The Kusten Vorland team carried out a routine inspection of a 19th century attic, and found a huge spider skin, which the Cardiff Reptile Centre believe to be a Chilean Rose Tarantula.
Surveyor Katie Parsons-Young led her team into the dark attic after three days at the empty house on The Parade, in Roath.
She told Wales Online that she got the shock of her life when she spotted the giant hairy leg: "We had lighting in there so we moved the lighting to the other area of the attic where I was and could see there was something.
"I was the first in. I sort of saw a leg, screamed and went."
The team originally thought it was a dead spider but, after showing the specimen to the Cardiff Reptile Centre, they confirmed it was a skin, which means the spider could still be at large.
And experts say that after skin-shedding, the effect of blood pumping through the spider means it could now be as big as 7ins in diameter.
The fact the skin was found in an asbestos-contaminated building means the spider itself could be tainted with the carcinogen, reports the Independent.
And, Wales Online says, if the skin is found to have traces of mesothelioma – caused by asbestos exposure – it is thought it would be a world-first.
It is not yet known if the tarantula was a lost pet, or part of a population breeding in the area.
The Chilean Rose Tarantula's natural habitat is the desert and scrub regions of Northern Chile, Bolivia, and Argentina.
However, it is a very common pet spider, particularly in America, due to the large number of wild-caught specimens exported cheaply from their native Chile into the US pet trade.
The species are usually skittish, running away from danger rather than acting defensively, but they may also raise their front legs and present their fangs in preparation to defend themselves.
They can act especially defensive for days after moulting. As with the majority of tarantulas from the Americas, they have small spine-like urticating hairs on their abdomen that they kick off or release when threatened as a defense.
In February 2009, a British man was treated for tarantula hairs lodged in his cornea. The hairs were thrown from the man's pet Chilean Rose Tarantula while he was cleaning its tank.
Related articles
Black widow spider found in Norfolk after hitching a ride from Texas
Essex woman almost dies after being bitten on the bottom by spider in Spain
%VIRTUAL-Gallery-152910%
