Terror as Woman Discovers Huntsman Spider 'Hiding' in Car

The internet has been terrified by a woman's shocking discovery in her car—a giant spider.

TikToker Chelsea Murray, under the handle @chelsmurray, shared a video of the moment she found the huge spider nestled inside the internal handle of one of her car doors.

Relatively unfazed, the Australian resident opened the car door and used a stick to try to gently coax the spider from its hiding space.

"Do you think you're hiding?" said a voice from behind the camera. "You need to get out."

With a little bit of poking around, the brave TikToker managed to get the spider out of the car and onto the ground.

Huntsman spiders are a common sight in Australia. They are known for their sizable appearance and formidable hunting abilities. These hairy arachnids can grow as wide as 15cm (almost 6 inches); they have disproportionately large front legs compared to their back ones.

While their appearance may be intimidating, huntsman spiders are generally harmless to humans. They are venomous, but are only considered harmful when an individual is allergic to their venom.

They play a crucial role in controlling insect populations like cockroaches.

Last year, a giant pregnant huntsman spider was found lurking in a home in South East Australia, which prompted people to suggest the homeowner "burn the house down and call in an airstrike."

Another viral video shows the moment a group of friends tried to remove a huntsman from their Sydney apartment with hilarious consequences.

The video has been viewed a shocking 2.7 million times on TikTok, and has stunned viewers, who have shared reactions of shock and fascination.

"I definitely didn't expect this reaction for it haha now I feel like I have to go find more spiders," Murray told Newsweek. "I would have to do a full car check upon entering every time then a full house check and bag check and shoe check," said viewer Daczs.

Lenoi Lei said she could never live in Australia as a result of all of the wildlife. "It's one country I don't think I could ever live in," her comment read.

Others were impressed with the bravery the TikToker showed. One user said they would have taken a different course of action. "At this point I would choose to walk," they said.

"American here. Why do you guys have military-grade spiders?" quipped another commenter.

But others were more rational about the spider: "It's just a hunstman," Sezza commented. "They don't bite, are not venomous. Only creepy when they run fast. They eat mosquitoes for us."

While viewer DrBobPaisleyGP joked: "You handled that like a pro. I'd have torched the car."

Update 03/11/2024 at 6:20 a.m.: This story was updated with a new video, a picture and comments.