Charlotte’s mega-web: Is this dinner-plate sized huntsman Australia’s biggest spider?
A massive huntsman spider has been photographed frolicking on a broom at a Queensland animal rescue shelter.
The spider, now known as Charlotte, has been looked after by animal rescuers but would be an absolute nightmare for anyone with arachnophobia.
The animal shelter said the huntsman was not aggressive in any way. Image: Facebook
Barnyard Betty, who took the photo, said Charlotte was found at the shelter in October 2015, after the landlords came to clean up an old farmhouse on the property.
"The kids came running out of the house yelling to me that there was a spider," Betty told Yahoo7. "Their mother wanted to kill it! I said, 'no! Don't kill it I'll remove it!'"
But removing the massive arachnid was no easy feat.
Betty's usual method of transporting spiders is to put a glass over the top of them and slide a piece of paper underneath to trap them, but Charlotte was so big that a glass wouldn't fit over her.
In fact, even a bucket proved to be too small for her long legs, and Betty worried that she might injure them.
"She was the size of a dinner plate," she said. "So I grabbed an old broom and gently coaxed her to climb onto the broomhead."
Betty moved her to an old shed away from people and predators to continue living in peace.
In recent days Charlotte has become famous, as her photos re-emerged on Facebook with hundreds of comments noting her incredible size.
Could this be the biggest huntsman in Australia? Image: Facebook
"Wonderful. She's a beauty. I wouldn't mind admiring at a distance, though," wrote one commenter.
"Oh my goodness. I can't believe a spider that big exists," wrote another.
"Let's never go to Australia" another commenter said.
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She has since been released into the wild, to the horror of arachnophobes.
But Barnyard Betty insists Charlotte, like most spiders, just wants to go about her business of eating bugs and living in peace.
"All creatures great and small are welcome here at Barnyard Betty's Rescue - a safe haven no matter how you look!!" the shelter wrote on Facebook.
A huntsman spider's bite isn't dangerous. It's their appearance that concerns people.
On Wednesday a man crashed his car into Lake Cathie in NSW after a huntsman fell on his lap. Image: Facebook
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