Red Headed Mouse Spider

The forepart of the cephalothorax of the male is red. The rest of the body is either dark brown or black in colour.
Mouse spiders are closely related to trapdoor and funnel-web spiders but can be distinguished by their pronounced compact, squat shape and huge fang sheaths at the front of the head area.
The body size reaches around 35mm, with the male being distinctly smalled and less robust

Male mouse spiders search for mate once they reach maturity at around four years of age. Mating takes place in the female’s burrow, after which the male dies
The female lays 60 or more eggs within an egg sac that she places into a brood chamber off the main shaft of her burrow
The spiderlings of the Red-headed Mouse Spider disperse by ballooning, a technique that is rare in mygalomorphs (the Mouse Spider Family)

Mouse spiders live in oval burrows up to a metre in length, often constructed in the banks of water courses. The female’s burrow usually has a hinged lid and is branched “Y” shape. These spiders are common but are very secretive and rarely seen. Heavy rain often forces them out of their burrows and this is when they may be encountered
The extremely large and robust fangs enable mouse spiders to overpower quite large food items. Even the thickest beetle shell is no match of these efficient weapons
The venom is very toxic and, although no human deaths have been recorded, a bite from a mouse spider should be considered potentially life threatening and medical attention should be sought immediately.

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