By ANNE BESTON environment reporter
A spider hunt has been launched in east Auckland after a large, hairy Australian was found in a Bucklands Beach home.
The Sydney huntsman spider (Holconia immanis) is the size of an average hand-span and was identified late last month. A familiar sight in Australia's largest city,
it is not welcome here.
"We can't speculate as to how it got here but it has the potential to impact on our native spiders and geckos," said a biosecurity spokeswoman for the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Philippa White.
The spider was caught by a family member as it was heading into the house from the garden.
Landcare Research entomologist Grace Hall, who identified the huntsman, is most closely involved with its close relation the Avondale tarantula.
She said the Bucklands Beach find was probably a "one-off".
"There is nothing that points to it being established here."
If there were more, they would be hard to catch because it was almost impossible to set traps for them, she said.
MAF has been canvassing Bucklands Beach and surrounding suburbs by mail asking residents to look out for the spiders.
They grow up to 15cm, including legs, and are hairy with a flat, grey body and specks of brown on the abdomen. Their bite can cause painful swelling but is not seen as a serious health threat.
The huntsman has a bad reputation in its homeland because of its imposing size and ability to move fast, but is mostly shy and nocturnal.
A voracious feeder, it ambushes prey by hanging upside down on trees and can walk across walls and ceilings. It usually invades houses in search of food - insects such as crickets and flies but also small lizards.
