A TERRIFYING new species of venomous spider that rots human flesh with a single bite and hides in furniture has been found.
The poisoning beast was discovered by scientists in Mexico who dubbed the spider Loxosceles Tenochtitlan.
Although they are not deadly, Loxoceles spiders are known for having a potent tissue-destroying venom that can cause necrosis lesions in the skin of up to 40cm.
This takes several months to heal and leaves a permanent scar in the end.
The bite can even be more dangerous when it comes to children, as it can end up being carried by the bloodstream resulting in red cell destruction.
GROUNDBREAKING DISCOVERY
Violin spider, also known as recluse spiders, was at first confused with the Loxosceles misteca, another species native to the Mexican states of Guerrero and Morelos but introduced in the Valley of Mexico.
According to researchers, the spider was discovered by biologist and university professor Alejandro Valdez-Mondragon together with his students Claudia Navarro, Karen Solis, Mayra Cortez y Alma Juarez.
The new species was discovered by scientists from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).
Alejandro told local media: “As it is very similar to the Loxosceles misteca we thought that it had been introduced to this region by the shipping of ornamental plants, but when doing molecular biology studies of both species, we realised that they are completely different.”
The scientist also warned that this poisonous species can bite humans if they feel attacked.
They tend to usually hide in holes between objects, furniture or in walls.
He added: “We provide them with the temperature, humidity and food to establish themselves in our homes, which puts us at risk of having an accident with them, although they also perform an important ecological function when feeding on insects.”
The spiders are attracted to rubbish as they can feed on the insects around it and it is known that females’ are twice as poisonous as males.
Mexico is the country with the highest diversity of the genus Loxosceles as 40 out of the 140 species that exist in the world are native to the country.
Written By: Nika Shakhnazarova.
This article was originally published on The Sun.