Avicularia versicolor

[SkyeSpider]

Yup, go figure. The guy allergic to spiders gets bitten. It was by a 1/4" versicolor.

I was moving the versicolor from its delicup to a vial to take it to a reptile show when I noticed it had a piece of silk attached to it that was attached to some moss. I let the spider run onto my hand and started to work the moss off the silk (rather than the silk off the spider). The poor thing panicked and bit me twice. Once on my index finger, which was a dry bite; Once on my thumb, which it injected venom. I kept working on the silk, even after getting bitten, got it loose and got the spider into the vial.

After being bitten, I immediately washed my hands under VERY hot water. There was no pain at all from the first bite (which is why I assume it to be a dry bite). The one of my thumb (right on the knuckle) was already burning, turning red, itching, and swelling. I also got a pins-and-needles feeling throughout my thumb.

Within 30 minutes, the burning and itching went away. After an hour, the redness and pins-and-needles subsided. It's been two-and-a-half hours since the bite, and I'm just left with stiffness and a little bit of swelling.

It seems I'm not allergic to the venom, after this. At least some good news came of this.

(The photo is of the guilty versicolor)

 

[Lycanthrope]

wouldnt you know it. I keep a bunch of defensive species, and the first time i get chomped its by a cute little versicolor . it was my fault really, i was feeding some of my t's, and i have made a habit of handing my 3" versi its cricket with my fingers. well this time she grabbed my thumb instead of the cricket. i felt a prick, less painful than a bee sting really. only one fang penetrated and that didnt even go in very far, as she quickly pulled away when she realized she grabbed the wrong thing. she let go, grabbed the cricket i dropped and began feasting. no after-effects, just a slightly swollen spot like with a mosquito bite.

 

[David_F]

Yesterday I had my female A. versicolor out to get a legspan measurement (~4", BTW...at least I got what I came for. ). While attempting to put her back in her enclosure she walked to the palm of my hand and continued around to go around to the back of my hand. As I turned my hand I noticed her spreading her chelicerae so had a good idea a bite was coming. I started moving closer to the ground in case she decided to jump or I tossed her in the event of a bite. Just as she reached my thumb she decided to bite. Very slowly she opened her chelicerae and bit down on the first knuckle of my thumb. It seemed to be more of an exploratory bite or possible to allow better balance on my hand. It didn't appear to be a defensive bite. There was no pain from the bite and since my thumb was flexed she wasn't able to get deep penetration. I was able to gently shake her off my hand and she jumped a distance of about four inches to the floor. After checking her for injuries (she's fine...at a cricket right after the incident....I must not taste too good.) I put her back in her home. There was very little to no swelling from the bite but the area did turn red and it itched for about fifteen minutes. About 45 minutes after the bite I noticed a dull ache and some tightness in the knuckle but it went away rather quickly. The redness went away after about 90 minutes. I'd say the worst part about the experience was knowing that the bite was coming but not being able to stop it without injuring her.

 

[milly_millipede]

My versicolor BIT ME! Please read!

Hi! I am 12 years old and had my versicolor spider for 2 years now. I went to spend the night at a friends house so I had to leave her ! When I arrived back home I missed her so much that I raced up stairs to my room like a gazelle getting chased by a cheetah! lol! Anyways I put my hand down on the ground (in her cage) so she would crawl on my hand, willingly she did it! then she got in the strike postition and I knew she was going to bite me right then and there and most of you are probably thinking " oh my why didnt you set her down?!?!" Well in awnser to that she doesnt seem to like to be touched when she is in the strike postition! So I closed my eyes and let it come. IT HURT SO SOOO SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BAD! I CRIED SO HARD FOR 1 HOUR STREIGHT! The reason she probably bit me is because she gets cranky when I am not around to hold her. SHE LOVES ME TO DEATH! I love her too even though she bit me. Anyways when she did bite me she left two fang marks on my right index finger. it was bleeding a tiny bit but I felt like I was going to lose my balance and fall. So I quickly went down stairs and my mom was so scared because she didnt want me to go into the hospital. But everything is okay now. I hope that I dont go to any friends houses anytime soon!

 

[Lorgakor]

Well a bite finally happened in my house, good thing it wasn't me lol! My husband was bitten by one of my sub-adult male A. versicolors. He had opened the container and was looking at the tarantula, with his hand holding on to the top of the container, but not in the container. I guess Pigwidgeon is a bit grumpy as he is in premolt and he just reached over the edge and bit my husband on his finger. I asked him how much it hurt compared to a bee sting, and he said it was less painful. There are two scabs on his finger, so it was a pretty good bite. He has had a bit of itchyness but no other negative effects were felt, not even any swelling in the area.

 

[nicks75]

Just got tagged by my versicolor, of coarse it was due to handling for the sake of handling, seemed calm for the first 2 minutes but for what ever reason, maybe she didnt like the way I was handling her or just didnt feel like being handled or maybe shes just a tarantula and sometimes people get bitten when they try handling them. Got no warning, wasnt a quick lash but slow enough to see the fangs come up and being stabbed.
she is about 4 inches, the bite happened on the middle finger knuckle of my backhand, the initial bite was very minor in pain, felt no worse than getting a shot, I felt no other pain which led me to believe it was a dry bite, but as I type this I feel some stinging, there is some redness on the knuckel but both could have been just from the stabbing. If any venom was injected it was very little as I expected much worse from a t bite. Ill update if there are any changes worth posting.

 

[nicks75]

ok after a month of being afraid too handle my a versicolor after getting bit the first time, I decided to try handling her once again to get some pics of her. I got her out of her tank, wasnt too cooperative about being nuddged out of her web house, but got her out using a small tissue rolled up like a stick. I had her out and I couldnt help but be terrified about getting bit again that my hands were shaking so bad but she was being very calm walking up my arms in the standard versicolor fashon with the legs swinging up and down, I love how they walk. up the elbow and taking her to my other hand. Had her out for about 5 minutes and got the pics I wanted and tried to put her back which she did not want to go so she stood on her tank for another 5 minutes, I decided to to cup her and try once again to put her back in, she must have really not wanted to go back in because I seen her fangs come out for about 2 seconds and I knew what was next, tag! im it. Right in my palm just below the bottom of my thumb, seeing the fangs and expecting it helped to control any reflexes so I just took it and she finally went into her tank probably laughing at me once again for getting me. I guess at this point she is one of the few versicolors that are biters.
Anyway I did see some drops of venom on the bite area but once again I did not feel any pain beyond the sting of the fangs which was not that bad, so either I am very insensite to versicolor venom or she pulled out before any venom could be injected and got some on my hand, or it could be that they just have a very weak venom. I am typing this about 15 minutes after the bite and would not have enen known I was bitten other than just a very minor pulsating stinging. She is about 4-5 inches.

 

[HcUnderoath]

after buying my new versi, i was stupid enough to hold her right after a car ride, which wasnt the problem, i held her for a few minutes and it was just fine but then while putting her in i got a little clumsy and startled her, i was tagged right between the thumb and index finger, it was only 1.5'', just like a little pinprick barely even noticed it, only slight itching which lasted about 30 mins

 

[Steve Calceatum]

Well, it happened!!!!

Yesterday, I checked in on my freshly molted A. versicolor sling, whom I've named "Jezebel." She looked hardened, and was in a hunting-pose, so I decided to take her out for a measurement before feeding her. Instead of using a prod, I used my finger as I've never had any problems getting her out that way. :wall: :wall: :wall:

Jezebel must have thought my finger was food, or I must have made some wrong move, because she nailed me (left-hand index finger) pretty hard!!! After that, she hopped onto my arm like nothing happened. About 30 seconds later I got my measurement (1.5"), and a cellphone pic to commerate the event. She played around for about 15 minutes more, then I put her back and fed her.

I had no visible wound, nor did I feel the bite happen, as my fingers are pretty calloused from many years of playing guitar. My finger was sore, and a tad swollen for a couple of hours, but no other side-effects were noticed. To be perfectly honest, being bitten by a cricket hurt alot more, and it was more shocking to me than anything else.

Like mom always told me, "If you play with fire....." However, I expected that something like my OBT would have fanged me long before this one would have. Not a bad sp. to be bitten by, especially since this particular T is my personal favorite one in my collection.

 

[AbraCadaver]

* The size of the spider.
1,85"
* How the bite occured.
Was filling her waterdish. Without really thinking about it, I touched her web. I believe the spider in question was completly blind after an injury to her carapace, and therefore thought I was food.
* What type of physical damage was caused.
Two pinprick sized wounds on my right pinky
* What symptoms you experienced.
Stinging and a slight itch.
* How long the symptoms lasted.
No more than a day.
* What medical attention you received if any.
None
* Any lingering effects from the bite.
None

I tried to get pictures, but it was impossible to get the tiny pricks to show up.

 

[kaydyn1512]

Avicularia versicolor love bite

My son was cupping my beautiful, very docile A versi "Aurora" in his hand when Aurora decided he just didn't want to stay in there. He really wasn't out to bite at all but used his fangs basically as leverage much like a mountain climber might use pics, to get himself out. Both fangs went into my sons thumb but it was obvious that very little venom actually got into his body. There was very localized swelling and maybe 15 minutes of slight itching around the bite area and that really was it. I have no doubt the reaction would have been a bit stronger if the bite was intended to cause harm. The video below shows my son with Aurora fangs actually still in his finger then watching them come out.

 

[SuzukiSwift]

Got bitten for the first time by my little 2.5" versi juvie lol I opened her enclosure to feed her and she walked out towards the edge of the door, I thought I would handle her a bit (which I'd done before) before feeding so I held my hand out by the door for her to walk onto. She didn't respond so I touched one of her front legs with my pinky finger and she must've thought it was food because she quickly struck it then backed off (probably realizing it didn't taste so good haha)

At first I thought the bite was dry and it was barely painful, I was just surprised really. But a few minutes later a strange burning sensation started beneath the skin, but not as bad as I was expecting by far. Now and again there was a sharp pain in the joints of that finger and the one next to it (also in my knee on that side for some reason but I doubt it was related) Symptoms subsided in a few hours, the finger felt a little strange the next day but barely noticeable. Not bad at all, I was expecting much worse so I'm thinking she didn't inject much venom.

The CUTE thing was, after she tagged my finger (she was skittish at the time) I tong fed her the cricket and she just calmly walked on to it, wrapped her legs around it & sank her fangs into it, then walked off at a dainty pace I couldn't help but laugh lol