A technician from Fishers Gloucester Volvo Specialists in Bristol Road had a shock recently when a false widow spider emerged during a cambelt and water pump replacement on a Ford KA.
Mike and his business partner Toby Fisher grabbed the nearest object, which happened to be a brake cleaner can and poked the spider into the container with a long screwdriver.
Toby said: “Mike took the cambelt off and this huge spider appeared.
“It started walking towards him.
“He had an almighty fright.
“We didn’t know what spider it was but when we looked it up we found out it was a false widow.”
False widows are said to like dry, warm environments where they will be unlikely to be disturbed.
Native to Madeira and the Canary islands, they are believed to have come to Britain via cargo transport in the 1870s and can give a reaction similar to a bee or wasp sting.
