Spider profile

Sydney Funnel-Web Spider

Atrax robustus

Database risk label: CRITICAL
Location: Sydney region, NSW
Database size: 1-5cm body length

WildGuardian risk label: CRITICAL. This label communicates an urgent human-safety risk; it is not a conservation-status assessment.

The Sydney Funnel-Web Spider is Atrax robustus, a burrowing Australian spider in the family Atracidae. It is the species behind the familiar Sydney name, but that name must now be used carefully: a 2025 taxonomic study separated the former broad “Sydney funnel-web” concept into three Atrax species. In that revision, A. robustus is the species centred largely on metropolitan Sydney, while A. montanus and A. christenseni are separate species with partly different distributions. [1] [3]

Identification: useful clues, not a field diagnosis

Sydney Funnel-Web Spiders are usually shiny dark brown to black. Their spinnerets — the silk-spinning structures at the end of the abdomen — are finger-like and visible. A male Atrax robustus has a prominent mating spur around the middle of the second pair of legs. The Australian Museum lists a body-size range of 2–4 cm for the species. [1]

Those features can guide an expert assessment, but they do not make a visual identification reliable for the public. The Australian Museum states that A. robustus cannot easily be separated by eye from the Southern Sydney Funnel-Web, A. montanus. Mouse spiders, trapdoor spiders and Black House Spiders can also be mistaken for funnel-webs. [1] [2]

A raised posture and displayed fangs may be seen when a Sydney Funnel-Web is threatened, but this is not an identification test and should never be provoked. [1] A photo may assist identification only if it does not delay calling an ambulance and applying pressure bandaging with immobilisation. Do not bring a live spider to hospital. [5]

Where Hadronyche fits

Hadronyche is a genus-level grouping, not another name for Atrax robustus. Australian funnel-webs include 38 described species in three genera: Hadronyche, Atrax and Illawarra. This page does not generalise a Hadronyche species’ range, habitat, appearance or medical significance to A. robustus. [2]

Australian range and habitat

Following the 2025 revision, Atrax robustus sensu stricto is largely distributed through the wider Sydney metropolitan area and Central Coast, with some records from the Blue Mountains and Wollongong. A. montanus overlaps it in places but extends further west and south; the species around Newcastle recognised in the study is A. christenseni, not A. robustus. [3]

The Australian Museum describes the main range as Central Coast to Georges River, as far west as Baulkham Hills near its southern end. It records a reduced recent southern range, with recent records south of the Parramatta River limited to the Bankstown–Mortdale area, alongside some Blue Mountains and Wollongong records. [1]

Within that range, the species occurs in bushy suburbs as well as open and closed sclerophyll forest and woodland. The Museum records it particularly in sheltered terrain such as shady gullies and slopes with south or east aspects. Research supporting the taxonomic revision likewise describes A. robustus in open and closed woodland, in contrast with A. montanus, which the authors found mostly in rainforest habitats associated with gullies and drainage lines. [1] [3]

Sydney Funnel-Webs live in silk-lined burrows in sheltered places under logs and rocks where a cool, humid microclimate can be maintained. The entrance has a funnel-like silk vestibule and trip-lines. The wider funnel-web group favours sheltered, moist gardens such as rockeries and dense shrubberies rather than open lawn. [1] [2]

Behaviour and activity

The spider waits just inside its burrow and detects vibrations on silk trip-lines. It may rush out to take prey such as beetles, cockroaches, small lizards or millipedes, then returns to the burrow to feed. This is a sit-and-wait predatory behaviour, not evidence that the spider seeks people. [1]

Male Sydney Funnel-Webs leave their burrows mainly over summer and autumn to find females. After a humid night, males seek cool, dark cover at dawn because dry daytime conditions can dehydrate them. Temporary shelter can include an outdoor shoe; males may also enter backyards, pools or houses. [1]

Rain can flood burrows and increase activity, while humidity favours movement outside them. Most activity is nocturnal, but people digging in soil can encounter funnel-webs in burrows at any time of year. [2]

Safer encounters around home and bushland

The aim is to avoid contact rather than test or identify a spider. A Sydney Funnel-Web may be in a burrow or a temporary sheltered space, and similar-looking spiders add uncertainty. Do not touch, handle, capture or try to relocate an unknown dark spider. Attempts to capture a suspected funnel-web can lead to further bites. [1] [5]

Simple precautions supported by Australian health guidance are:

Leave spiders alone and make sure children do not touch them. [4]
Check shoes left outdoors before putting them on. This is particularly relevant because the Australian Museum records outdoor shoes as potential temporary shelter for wandering males. [1] [4]
Wear gloves when gardening. Take particular care around sheltered burrow habitat such as logs, rocks, rockeries and dense shrubs. [1] [2] [4]

If a spider is encountered, give it space and keep other people and pets away. After a possible bite, call 000; for further poisons information once emergency action is underway, NSW Poisons Information Centre lists 13 11 26. [5] [6]

Possible bite: call 000, then follow official advice

A suspected funnel-web bite needs urgent action even if the spider was not seen clearly. Healthdirect says a bite from a big black spider should be treated as a medical emergency, and ANZCOR says life-threatening effects may occur within 10 minutes. [4] [5]

Possible signs can include bite-site pain, tingling around the mouth, heavy sweating, salivation, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, muscle twitching, breathing difficulty, and confusion or unconsciousness. Not everyone will have the same signs, so absence of a particular symptom is not a reason to wait. [4] [5]

Use these official first-aid priorities while waiting for the ambulance:

Call 000 for an ambulance. Do not wait for identification, symptoms or a photo. [4] [5]
Keep the person still, reassured and under observation. [5]
Apply pressure bandaging with immobilisation for a suspected funnel-web bite, in line with ANZCOR and Healthdirect guidance. [4] [5]
If the person is unresponsive and not breathing normally, follow the Australian Resuscitation Council basic life-support flowchart and begin CPR if trained to do so. [5]

Do not attempt to capture the spider or take a live spider to hospital. [5]

Frequently asked questions

Is every shiny black spider in Sydney a Sydney Funnel-Web?

No. Dark, shiny spiders can include mouse spiders, trapdoor spiders and Black House Spiders, and A. robustus itself cannot easily be separated by eye from A. montanus. Treat appearance as a reason for care, not as a diagnosis. After a possible bite from a funnel-web or big black spider, call 000. [1] [4]

Where does Atrax robustus occur?

The current evidence places the true A. robustus mainly in metropolitan Sydney and the Central Coast, with some Blue Mountains and Wollongong records. It is not the Newcastle species recognised by the 2025 revision; that species is A. christenseni. [1] [3]

When might people encounter one?

Males mainly wander in summer and autumn in search of females, especially after humid nights, and may use dark, cool shelter at dawn. Burrows can be encountered during soil work at any time of year. [1] [2]

Does a potential bite need a confirmed species identification?

No. Australian guidance is clear: if a funnel-web bite is suspected, send for an ambulance and use pressure bandaging with immobilisation. A photograph must not delay those steps, and a live spider should not be brought to hospital. [5]

References

Last reviewed: 21 October 2026. This is general information, not a substitute for medical care.