The 4-year-old Senn from Den Bosch unsuspectingly caught a poisonous spider. Only later did his mother find out what was in the jar: a false wolf spider from southern Europe. “I got scared of Spanish.”
“It’s like Freek Vonk”, that’s how mother Michèlle de Haas describes her son. “Senn is absolutely crazy about nature. He adores catching insects. Worms, snails or even maggots: he takes it all”, his mother knows. “I’m scared of everything,” she laughs.
The little biologist did not hesitate for a moment to follow the eight-legged friend. “Mama, big spider! Big spider,” he cried. “I had no idea. He always politely asks if he can take it, so that was allowed.” And so the animal, which was sitting next to the dog crate, was skillfully placed in a jar.
After some searching on the internet, the realization came. Michelle forwarded the photo of the spider to a friend, who found articles about the unusual creature. The AD previously described the spider as ‘aggressive’ and ‘poisonous’.
‘Huge claws’
“He had huge claws. He was also a bit bigger than normal.” After measuring, according to his mother, Senn came to about six centimeters from leg to leg. “The spin was also very fast, that was really not normal.”
The animal was first mainly found in southern Europe, but due to climate change, the animal is also thriving here. Spider expert Sjef van Overdijk confirms that it concerns the false wolf spider, the so-called zoropsis spinimana.
‘Not dangerous’
However, according to the expert, the child was not at any risk. “The spider only bites when it is cornered, for example if it gets stuck in clothing. The complaints would then be comparable to a wasp sting.” The expert from Oirschot loves spiders, worked for years at Dierenpark de Oliemeulen in Tilburg and founded the website Spinnetjes.com.
“Each spider is venomous to some degree, but the strength varies greatly from species to species. In the Netherlands, no spider is poisonous enough to harm us,” emphasizes Van Overdijk. “Even in Southern Europe, no one is ever bitten and there are many more living there.” He couldn’t help but laugh at the boy’s brave act. “That such a man just catching the spider is very beautiful. Why can’t a housewife just do that?”
Mother and son have now released the spider back into the garden. And so beautiful memories and a good story for birthdays remain. “I hope his family won’t come again.”