Catching snakes, frogs, and other animals in a backyard pool, whether you have one, is not unheard of. Nevertheless, most people do not dream to encounter a cluster of venomous spiders, alive, completely engulfed in the deep end.
But that’s exactly what a woman from Darwin found out last month.
When she came across nearly 20 venomous mouse spiders lying at the bottom of her pool, Lauren Merritt was shocked. Some of them were dead, but some were alive, even though they had been lying there for quite a while.
Experts warn Australians to be cautious of pool visitors, warning them that certain critters can still be alive even though they are completely immersed in chlorinated water.
Mouse spiders can potentially live for up to 24 hours underwater. The unique ability of this creepy crawler is to form an air bubble with the hairs on its back, a trick that enables it to breathe underwater.
Merritt shared a few photos on social media, hoping for a positive identification of the spiders she had removed from her tub.
Commentators pointed to the risks of moving a mouse spider from the water, reflecting on its unusual tendency to “reanimate” for some time after appearing dead.