Venomous Huntsman Spider Crawls Up Health Official's Leg During Australian Press Conference

A huntsman spider made an unexpected — and unwanted — visit during a health official's press conference.

Queensland Australia Health Minister Yvette D'Ath was giving an update on the COVID-19 situation in her state when a huntsman spider started crawling on her leg.

And she handled it better than most. "Can someone please get that spider off," she said while keeping her composure.

"This shows how controlled I can be," she added. "I don't like huntsman, but I am going to keep going and pretend I don't have a huntsman on me right now and let someone else manage this, but if it gets anywhere near my face, please let me know."

Huntsman spiders can measure about six inches across and are known to be fast, moving about three feet per second.

Unlike other spider species that build webs to trap their prey, huntsman spiders chase down their potential food sources with their long legs.

As creepy as spiders can be, Minister D'Ath was not in any real mortal danger. According to Live Science, huntsman spiders use venom when killing their prey, but that venom isn't fatal to a human.

A huntsman bite on a person would likely be painful and swell, and in some cases, cause mild nausea and headaches.

But you can't blame Minister D'Ath for not taking any chances. Eventually, she got to the rest of her speech, informing people that coronavirus cases have risen.

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