Rutland Sanctuary Zoo rescues black widow spider found at Bomber County Speed Shop in Grantham

A stowaway black widow spider found in a garage has been rescued by Rutland Sanctuary Zoo.

At the weekend the venomous spider was discovered in an imported vehicle at Bomber County Speed Shop in Grantham.

Immediately noticing the spider looked different to the eight-legged creatures normally seen in England, the owner put out a post asking for advice.

John Perriss, one of the mechanics at Bomber County Speed Shop spotted the spider last Saturday in the seat of one of the cars there, which had only been in the country for four months.

He said: “I’ve seen a lot of false widows before and my other half works at a nature reserve called Pensthorpe near Fakenham in Norfolk, so I sent a picture to her and she showed her associates, they confirmed [what it was] and told me not to touch it.

“She was a bit of a mean looking thing. It was quite obvious she wasn't a false widow, because she was quite glossy.

"I’m not bothered by spiders at all to be honest, but I could see this one looked a bit odd."

John contacted the team at Rutland Sanctuary Zoo, based at Rutland Water, which came to the rescue, giving the arachnid a home to live out the rest of her days.

Joanna Aldwinkle, who runs the zoo with her husband Jez, said: "Rather than panicking and dispatching this beauty the gentleman looked to keep her safe and find her a new home.

"He didn't squash it and instead got her to the right people, and kept his eye on her."

Joanna explained that 'it is not a common occurrence', but if it happens - through bringing it back from holiday or discovering it in an imported product - advised not to panic and instead keep it safe.

"I'm so thankful he kept the young lady safe," she said.

"If anyone spots something like that don't ever touch it. Nothing can happen as long as you keep your distance.

"Take a picture from far away. If you don't know what it is, then don't touch it.

"If you do get a bite then seek medical treatment."

The black widow is now comfortable in her new home at the zoo, and has been treated to a meal of locusts.

John said: "We left her in the seat and she stayed there over the weekend. I checked the seat on Monday and she was still there. She didn’t move at all or try to run off, then the guys from the zoo turned up with a tub and cradled her up.

"The zoo said [black widows] are quite a chilled out spider. They don’t go for people.

“It turned out quite well really, instead of her being squashed!”

The zoo decided on the name of Bellatrix for the spider, inspired by the death eater character in Harry Potter, but chose to shorten it to Bella to sound less intimidating.

While Joanna admits she isn't a 'spider person' she describes Bella as beautiful.

"I think people are scared of spiders because of the unknown," she said.

"It is about educating people and busting the myth as they are actually beautiful, wonderful and marvellous animals and are important to the eco system throughout the whole world."

Bella, who the zoo's vet believes is a 'mature spider', will be on show alongside the other animals at Rutland Sanctuary Zoo.