'Truck loads' of white tails

White tailed spider. Photo / file

Rotorua's arachnophobes have been climbing their walls and searching high and low after the discovery of a female redback spider in the city.

But, according to Rotorua pest control experts, it's not redbacks people should be worried about, it's the proliferation of white tail spiders that have been a problem in Rotorua this summer.

In Wednesday's Rotorua Daily Post, Bay Pest Services manager Chris Brunel said a client in the suburb of Glenholme had found a female redback spider in their garden in late January. The identity was confirmed as a redback by the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI).

He said it was the first redback he had seen in 25 years of pest control in the city, but he had also found one in a caravan imported to Taupo from Australia about a month ago.

Rhys Wolfgram of Total Insect Control said he had received plenty of calls from people who thought they had found a redback.

"Usually they are panicking a little bit. Redbacks are very very rare. I've never seen one in Rotorua," he said.

"I'm not one for pushing panic buttons, but there are truck loads of white tails around though. It must be the warmer weather but I've had plenty of work to do getting rid of them."

Mr Brunel said he'd had about five calls from people who thought they'd found a redback. "But they are not."

He said it was also very unusual to find katipo spiders in Rotorua.

"They are usually at the beach on the coast and hide in driftwood and sand dunes.

"But people are saying they would rather know than not know.

"All it takes is another one [redback] to pop up somewhere and we could have an issue.

"But, we're seeing a lot of white tails. Just about everyone I talk to at the moment has got them.

"They feed on other spiders and are not usually inside, but with summer and people having their windows and doors open they will get in.

"I sympathise with anyone about spiders, I'm married to the biggest arachnophobe around."

Mr Brunel said what was really interesting was the lack of wasps and bees around.

"We can't understand where they are, but it's something that sticks out to me, it's glaringly obvious.

"We are about 80 per cent down on the number of wasp nests around. On the other hand, there have been plenty of bumble bees."

Rotorua Hospital Head of Emergency Department, Dr Mazen Shasha, said there was no redback anti-venom on site at Rotorua Hospital, but it could be couriered from Waikato within hours.

"People who have been bitten can still be treated a few days after the spider bite."

Dr Shasha said in his 10 years working at Rotorua Hospital he has not seen a patient with a redback spider bite.