False widow spider spreading across Britain puts woman in intensive care
A species of spider spreading across Britain has almost claimed the life of a woman who was bitten as she lay in bed.
By Nigel Bunyan
7:00AM GMT 16 Jan 2009
Lyn Mitchell, 52, spent 26 hours in intensive care after being bitten by a false widow spider at her home in Egremont, west Cumbria.
Until recently the purple and black creature, which looks similar to the true black widow, has been found predominantly in the south of England.
But global warming, and in particular a succession of mild winters, has enabled it to migrate steadily northwards.
Mrs Mitchell, a grandmother, suffered a serious allergic reaction to the bite and within seconds she was gasping for breath and losing consciousness. However, despite her condition she managed to dial 999.
An ambulance crew arrived within minutes and took her to the West Cumberland Hospital, Whitehaven.
"It happened in the early hours of the morning," she recalled. "I was in a deep sleep but most have rolled over on top of the spider and it bit me.
"I jumped out of bed, pulled the duvet and sheets back and saw a spider running over the other side. It was only tiny, black and shiny, and it ran so quickly. I have never seen anything move so fast. I didn't try to kill it because I felt so ill.
"When I looked down I noticed two little pin marks on my chest."
Mrs Mitchell suspects the spider was attracted by the electric blanket she had left on overnight.
The false widow that bit her was later killed by a local authority pest control team. It was identified by experts at The Natural History Museum.
Mrs Mitchell said: "A bite from this kind of female spider would normally give someone a tingling kind of sensation. But if you are allergic, as I am, it can have life or death consequences."
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