Missulena pruinosa
Northern Mouse Spider Identification in Australia
Stocky tropical northern mouse spider; an adult male may have a broad cream to bluish-white abdomen, while females are dark and remain near their burrows.
Medical emergency potentialThe Northern mouse spider, Missulena pruinosa, is a stout burrowing mygalomorph of tropical northern Australia. The most useful field candidate is a wandering adult male with a glossy dark head and legs and a broad pale abdominal field described as yellowish-cream by Australian Museum and white to bluish-white by the Northern Territory Government. That contrast is helpful, but it is not proof: lighting changes pale colours, females are much darker, other mouse spiders overlap, and large dark mygalomorphs can be confused with funnel-web and trapdoor spiders. Never handle one to check an identification. A suspected bite should be managed as a medical emergency even though the published series of seven definite M. pruinosa bites found only minor or local effects, with headache in two cases.
Quick identification
- Stout mouse-spider build with a high, bulbous head-and-jaw region and smooth shiny carapace
- Eyes spread across the front of the carapace rather than gathered in one compact group
- Short spinnerets ending in a rounded, button-like segment
- Adult male may combine dark head and legs with a broad cream, white or bluish-white abdominal field
- Tropical northern locality and a silk-lined burrow—or a male wandering after rain—support the identification
What to check next
Photograph from above and the side without touching the spider, include the whole body and a safe scale, and record exact locality, date, rainfall and whether a burrow was present. Keep the result at mouse spider or mygalomorph level when the eye arrangement, spinnerets, sex or abdomen is unclear.
When to seek medical help
Treat a suspected mouse spider bite as an emergency. Call Triple Zero (000), keep the person lying still, apply a pressure-immobilisation bandage to the bitten limb and splint it, then wait for an ambulance. Do not wash the bite, cut or suck it, apply a tourniquet, or try to catch the spider by hand. If safe, a photograph may help. The exact-species published series found mostly local effects, but that does not make a fresh field bite safe to assess at home: identification may be wrong, mouse-spider venom can be highly active, and the spider can resemble a funnel-web.
Where it is usually seen
Silk-lined soil burrows in tropical northern Australia, including woodland, open ground and suitable gardens. The entrance may have one or two camouflaged doors and can be very hard to see. Females remain in or close to the retreat; mature males are more likely to be noticed crossing open ground, particularly after rain.