Spider under the skin

[BoyFromLA]

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I recently came across with this news article, and although actual date of the article is from 2014, though it was all new, and very interesting to me.

Has anyone remember this article at all? Was it revealed what spider it was?

 

[chanda]

According to Snopes, this is probably false: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/bali-awry/

"Although Maxwell’s tale spread quite widely, nearly all the initial reports of it stemmed from the same source, an article published by the Australian news site NT News.

Moreover, all the information contained in that article came from Maxwell himself, thus unleashing on the Internet that bane of fact-checkers: the single-source, self-reported, uncorroborated implausible story. And not only was that story reminiscent of several other familiar arachnid-based urban legends that have circulated for more than a century, such as those about spiders living or laying eggs under human skin, but the reporting agency (Australian Northern Territory’s NT News) is one akin to America’s National Enquirer or Weekly World News: the online version of a tabloid that publishes silly, sensationalized articles such as “Obama Gets Croc Insurance,” “Frog Gets Struck Down by Lightning,” and “Best Man Left Bleeding After Being Hit in Eye by Flying Dildo.”

We’ve found no documented cases of spiders living and burrowing under human skin, or even any information suggesting that such an occurrence is possible. Christopher Buddle, an associate professor at McGill University’s Department of Natural Resource Sciences, addressed Thomas’ claim in an e-mail, saying the story didn’t match with what we know about spider behavior:

I think this is extremely suspect, unusual, and likely not possible. Simply put: it is not plausible and I can think of no valid reason why a spider might ‘crawl beneath skin through a scar’. The claim that it was ‘feeding and moving up through the scar tissue’ defies logic and defies what we know about the biology of spiders. I am also sceptical because the ‘evidence’ (the spider itself) is not presented.

As noted, no corroborating information about this alleged medical case has been offered: no pictures of the skin-invading spider have been presented, no doctors involved in treating the patient have been quoted, and no witnesses to the spider removal other than Dylan Maxwell himself have been referenced."

 

[BoyFromLA]

Thanks @chanda for detailed reference with explanation!

 

[Arachnoenthusiast]

A quick search shows lots of weird claims of them living in, among other places, ears and lungs. All I know for sure is I've never experienced any of these. Haha.

 

[BoyFromLA]

A quick search shows lots of weird claims of them living in, among other places, ears and lungs. All I know for sure is I've never experienced any of these. Haha.

Fair enough!

 

[The Snark]

My mother had several scar lines like the one pictured on a leg. Close encounters with a Portuguese man o' war in the S. China sea.
"Stings from a Portuguese man o' war are often extremely painful. They result in severe dermatitis characterized by long, thin, open wounds that resemble those caused by a whip."

Down in Aus. it's all about Box Jellyfish with a first aid box planted every 100 feet along some of the beaches. Reputed to pack a very similar punch to the Port.

 

[darkness975]

snopes is not a reliable source for anything.

But in this case I agree the story is false.

 

[Cororon]

It's just one of those creepy sensationalist tabloid things. Spiders aren't parasites like that. Sure, there are som crafty spiders, like jumping spiders who steal eggs from other spiders, or rob ants who are carrying things.

 

[The Snark]

Sure, there are som crafty spiders,

Portia!

 

[Cororon]

Portia!

Portias are awesome, very smart. It might be the most intelligent spider genus that has been discovered so far. But I'm sure high intelligence will be discovered in more spiders in the future.

 

[The Snark]

Portias are awesome, very smart. It might be the most intelligent spider genus that has been discovered so far. But I'm sure high intelligence will be discovered in more spiders in the future.

Aggravating. I saw a video, not on Youtube. Can't find it now. A Portia patrolling around an agelenid's web. Examining it from all angles. The web was typical grass spider, all sorts of terrain to cover, stems and leaves to negotiate. The narrative kicked in. Was it simply an opportunity predator looking for an opening or was it remembering? It moved away from the web then returned about and hour later to the same section of web it had patrolled over and over. It was at that location it made a successful attack. Possibly pure luck, but it certainly looked like it was following a pre-meditated plan

 

[Albireo Wulfbooper]

Oops, wrong thread lol. Anyway, I'm pretty sure I know at least a few people who are definitely just a few billion spiders controlling a people suit, so while this report is certainly nonsense, spider people-puppeteers live among us. Consider yourselves truthed.