Mouse spiders

Family Actinopodidae

Female Red-headed Mouse Spider
Female Red-headed Mouse Spider (Missulena occatoria)

There are eight species of mouse spiders in Australia and they are widely distributed across the mainland. They vary from 10-35 mm body length and all have distinctively bulbous head and jaw regions. They are often confused with funnel-web spiders. While mouse spider bites are not common, a few have caused serious effects in humans, with symptoms similar to funnel-web spider envenomation. Fortunately, mouse spiders are not usually abundant in heavily populated urban areas.

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