How Often are Spiders Found in Bananas?

Spiders are sometimes found in bananas from other continents, although finding a spider in your bananas is very rare.

Spiders have been occasionally found in banana batches, which has caused schools to close and people to be evacuated from homes. Despite that, the majority of spiders that are found in bananas are relatively harmless to humans, even though they might appear menacing.

Because of their threatening appearance, people who find spiders in bananas often panic, leading them to take actions that they wouldn’t have needed to take.

How Often are Spiders Found in Bananas?

Spiders will sometimes be found in bananas from South America and Africa, although the likelihood of that happening is pretty low.

Many spider species like to hide in areas where they are hidden and where they can maintain their peace. That’s why they hide in bananas, where they can stay reasonably hidden from the outside world.

Unfortunately, that sometimes means that spiders also stay in these bananas and are transported to other parts of the world when it happens. And this usually has bad consequences for the recipients, who often panic when they see a spider.

It does not happen often, but these are some of the most famous findings of spiders in bananas in recent times.

Famous Cases

1. UK Children’s Nursery

One of the most famous findings of spiders in bananas was in Rochdale, UK, at a local nursery school.

There, they found a Colombian banana spider, or the wandering spider, inside the packet of bananas.

This caused the whole nursery school to shut down, leading to panic among teachers and pupils alike.

It turns out that the panic was justified to an extent, since what they found was a dangerous spider that could cause serious damage, especially to children. The school got shut down and pest control experts were called into action to deal with the situation.

The action was successful, but the spider got the short end of the stick, unfortunately.

2. UK: Hundreds of Spiders in a Banana!

Another report of spiders being caught in bananas comes from the UK where a woman found hundreds of Brazilian wandering spiders inside her banana, causing her to evacuate her home.

Normally, these spiders are not dangerous or life-threatening, but they can be that for babies.

This was relevant to this particular case since the woman living in the home where bananas were found had a 7-month child.

Again, pest control specialists were called into action and they were successful in neutralizing the threat, allowing the young family to move back into their home safely.

3. UK Supermarket: Brazilian Wandering Spiders in Bananas

There was another case of Brazilian wandering spiders in bananas, this time from a family that found dozens of spiders in bananas bought from Sainsbury’s.

The mother of the family immediately called pest control and she was instructed to evacuate the home, which the family did.

At first, the spiders were seen merely as funny-looking spots on bananas, until she decided to investigate more closely. That’s when she made a shocking discovery: it was not small harmless spots, but some of the most dangerous spiders in the world.

The supermarket chain, Sainsbury’s, where these bananas were bought, was forced to apologize to the young family, and they were also forced to investigate their bananas and whether there were more spiders caught inside banana packs.

4. Milwaukee USA: Black Widows in Grape Container

Another famous case of spiders in bananas comes from Milwaukee where a man found a black widow spider inside a container full of grapes.

These grapes were bought at Aldi, one of the most well-known supermarket chains worldwide.

Although these spiders were not caught inside bananas, the supermarket chain was forced to inspect all their fruits, including bananas, to find whether there were spiders caught inside these containers as well.

The grapes were later removed from the offering of the market and other fruits were closely inspected if other black widows were lurking around.

Related: Do Spider Plants Attract Spiders?

Which Spiders Are Found in Bananas Most Often?

The most common spider species that are found in bananas are Brazilian wandering spiders, which are particularly known for their liking of bananas.

These spiders often seek refuge in bananas, where they can hide from other animals as they seek shelter in bananas and other fruits. Sometimes, these spiders are unlucky enough to stay on bananas as they get shipped to other countries in the world.

This sometimes leads to incidents such as the above-mentioned ones where spiders of this type are found in banana packs.

It can cause panic with some people since these spiders look menacing, and they’re also potentially dangerous to humans.

Even though deaths are not that common from bites of this spider, their bites can cause significant damage to a human. The bite of a banana spider, as it is also sometimes called, can lead to pain, asphyxiation, breathing difficulty, sweating, lightheadedness, and other problems.

Other spiders found in bananas include black widows and jumping spiders.

Related Article: What Eats Bananas?

Can You Find a Spider in Bananas?

While it is possible that you might find a spider in your bananas, it remains highly unlikely that this will happen.

The rate at which Brazilian wandering spiders are found in bananas is wildly exaggerated. Sometimes, these unlucky spiders are found in bananas, which leads people to believe they might be also found in other bananas.

However, this is a rare occasion for many reasons.

The first reason is that bananas are checked for quality before they are shipped, which is where most bad bananas with spiders are thrown out.

Secondly, there are quality control teams at supermarkets and other stores that sell bananas, which will find the odd banana that doesn’t quite look right or a spider that might be lurking inside.

Related: What do Grass Spiders Eat?

Conclusion

Finding a spider inside your banana is possible, but it’s highly unlikely that it will happen. You should know that there are fairly rigorous procedures for inspecting bananas, so you will probably not find a spider in your bananas any time soon.