Peruvian wolf spider lays eggs inside cruise passenger’s toe
28 November 2023, 13:46
A cruise passenger has described the ordeal of having spiders’ eggs squeezed out of his big toe.
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Colin Blake was on a cruise celebrating his 35th wedding anniversary when his toe turned purple one night.
He visited the ships doctor who discovered that he had been bitten by a Peruvian wolf spider, which had laid eggs in his toe.
He was bitten while having a meal outdoors in Marseille.
He said his wife thought his toe might have turned red because of the new sandals he was wearing.
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But after the doctor examined him, he determined it was a spider bite and an incision was made and eggs were squeezed out.
Weeks after receiving the bit, he discovered a ‘foreign body’ in his foot, which turned out to be a baby spider.
He said antibiotics which he had been taking killed the young spider and then doctors had to remove it by cutting open his toe again.
“I did ask if I could keep it but they said no,” he told the BBC.
He is set to make a full recovery.
