Although there isn't a definitive answer to what the world's deadliest spider is, experts often place the Sydney funnel-web spider at the top of the list because it bears responsibility for the highest number of bites and human fatalities among all spiders. With fangs strong enough to penetrate finger and toenails, a funnel-web spider bite can kill a person in 15 minutes. That being said, because of the discovery of an antivenom in 1980, no one has died from a funnel-web spider bite since. The Sydney funnel-web spider is native to Australia, found across a 99-mile radius around Sydney. They are more dangerous than black widows or brown recluses because they become aggressive when threatened. If you try to shoo one away, it’s likely to attack. The active ingredient in funnel-web venom is delta-atracotoxin. This amino acid chain is a neurotoxin that causes our nerve cells to continually fire once it enters the bloodstream. That rapid firing sparks intense pain at the bite site that will start within 28 minutes of the actual bite, followed by shock, rapid heart rate, joint pain, severe muscle spasms — usually in the legs and belly area — heavy sweating, difficulty breathing, nausea, diarrhea, confusion and eventually coma. Today, antivenom-treated patients are commonly discharged from the hospital within 1-3 days.
