Horror as boy, eight, is bitten on his backside by false widow spider that had crawled into his swimming trunks - leaving him hallucinating and vomiting

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An eight year old boy was hospitalised after a false widow spider had crawled into his swimming shorts and bit him in the buttocks. . 

Bear Styles, eight, pulled on his swimming trunks left out on the patio to dry ahead of jumping into the family's 18ft swimming pool on Wednesday, July 21.

The youngster was unaware the 50p-sized spider was lurking inside his swim shorts before it sank its fangs into his right buttock. 

Bear Styles, eight, from Cambridgeshire, was bitten on his right buttock by a false widow spider

Bear's mother Dawn Styles, left, took her son to the hospital where he was treated by medics

The spider, pictured, was hidden inside Bear's swimming shorts and bit him when he pulled them on 

The youngster, pictured at hospital in Peterborough, became pale and started vomiting before hallucinating 

His father Vinny Styles shook out his son's shorts, forcing the spider onto the floor, where Bear's mother, Dawn, took a photograph of it. 

Initially, the family thought Bear was uninjured and jumped into the pool. But 40 minutes later, he was extremely pale, felt sick and his temperature increased to 91f. 

After monitoring him closely, the first aid-trained couple decided to call 111 where an operator advised they take him to hospital.

During the car journey to Peterborough City Hospital, Bear started hallucinating, claiming he could see Disney Pixar characters looming in the trees.

At the hospital, concerned staff monitored Bear and carried out numerous tests, confirming he'd suffered a reaction to a noble false widow spider.

Bear's mother, Mrs Styles, 42, suffered a similar injury 15 years earlier when a false widow spider bit her on the bottom. 

The youngster, pictured, pulled on his swimming shorts shortly before entering the pool in the back of his family home

Bear was forced to spend the night in hospital while he was kept under observation 

A week on from his ordeal, Mrs Styles shared her son's story so people are vigilant and shake clothing left outside before wearing them - and to seek medical help if bitten.

Mrs Styles, from March, Cambridgeshire, said: 'We've got a really big 18-foot pool in the garden, which we put up every year over the summer.

'The kids absolutely love it, they go in every day. My husband had just got in from work at around 7pm and they were getting ready to get in.

'As they go in every day, the kids leave their wet stuff slung over a chair in the garden or on the patio to dry.

'Bear went out and put his shorts on, obviously he didn't shake them or anything, and then he came in and said "something's bit my bum".

'He quickly whipped them off and I called my husband over. He picked up the shorts, shook them and a spider dropped out.

What is the false widow spider and what to do if you get bitten

False widow spiders are distinctive for their shiny, black flesh, bulbous bodies, thick legs and skull-like patterns.

Millions of false widows, Britain's most venomous spider, have been found across the UK and the population is believed to be growing.

The species has a brown bulbous abdomen with cream markings that look like a skull. They have long legs and can reach about 15mm in size.

Also known as steatoda nobilis, the spider is frequently confused for the black widow, which has deadly venom.

The Natural History Museum says that warmer summers mean the spider is spreading northwards through the UK, having previously been found mainly in southern England.

IF YOU GET BITTEN...

The first thing you should do is wash the area thoroughly with soap and water to prevent infection - and don't scratch, as if you break the skin there's more chance for bacteria to get in.

Cover bites with a plaster and apply an antihistamine sting cream to calm any inflammation or itching. Any redness, pain or swelling should subside after three days.

Be alert to potential signs of infection, such as weeping blisters or painful swelling, that continue to get worse after a few days. If this happens, seek advice from your GP.

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'We were laughing about it and making light of it because weirdly I was bitten on my bum about 15 years ago by a spider in my jeans.

'I always tell him that story and I said 'oh that happened to me, it's ok don't worry'.

'My husband made sure he was ok, took his shorts and cleaned them out. I got a picture of the spider just in case and then he went into the pool.'

Bear splashed around in the pool for half an hour with sales manager with his 47-year-old father, and siblings Forrest, 19, Finlay, 16, and 15-year-old Feather.

When Bear got out he was extremely pale, complained he felt sick, hot and cold and his heart started racing.

Mrs Styles said: 'After he got out of the pool he went really white, his lips were pale and he said he felt sick.

'I sat with him on the sofa and he felt steaming hot but his hands and feet were really cold. We took his temperature and it was 39.2 degrees, he had chills and was shaking.

'I called my husband over, we're both first aid trained, and he said we should ring 111.

'The lady on the phone said "you need to get to hospital now" and told me to take my phone in case we needed an ambulance on the way. When she said that, I remember thinking "oh my gosh".

'It's a 35-minute journey to the hospital, and as I was driving him there he started hallucinating. He really likes Disney Pixar Cars and he was saying "I can see Mater in the trees".

'Every few breaths he'd take a really big breath like he couldn't quite catch his breath. I had to help in walk into the hospital.

'On the way to the hospital it was scary, but once we got there I felt reassured that I was in a good place.

'I knew that even if anything did happen I could just quickly flag someone and get him seen.'

The pair arrived at hospital at 11pm where Bear started vomiting, he became drowsy, started suffering a thumping headache and his temperature remained high.

Mrs Styles said: 'I showed the doctor the photo of the spider and he consulted someone from the poisons department.

'The unusual thing was that this one didn't have the usual well-known skull marking that false widows do.

'The doctor said there were lots of different categories of false widows and this was a noble false widow.

'It wasn't a massive spider, including its legs it was about the size of a 50p piece, but it had bigger fangs than I would imagine a spider that size would have.

'They checked the site of the bite, there were just two little puncture wounds, it was on the right where the buttocks meets the leg.

'There was no blister or tracking. It was almost like he didn't get that external reaction, it was all internal.

'They were shocked his reaction was caused by a spider bite.'

Bear stayed in hospital overnight and was closely monitored, undergoing an ECG and blood tests before being discharged at 3.30pm the following day.

The doctor looking after Bear requested that they log his bite in their journal, so other professionals can learn from his experience.

Mrs Styles said: 'The doctor said he'd never seen a spider bite before and asked if he could document it in their medical journal so others can learn from it.

'Bear thought it was really cool.'

Mrs Styles said that Bear, who is autistic, was very tired after his ordeal and slept a whopping 13 hours when he returned home.

She continued: 'He was really tired, still very pale when he came home. That night he slept for 13 hours and the following night he slept lots too, which has been really good for him.

'He's also autistic, which sometimes has an impact on illnesses. Autistic people tend to feel pain and experience illness in a different way to neurotypical people.

'Often they don't really feel certain pain in the same way and other things they can over-feel. He wasn't making a big deal [of his symptoms]. He's not a fussy kid, he just deals with it.

'He's pretty much back to normal now. Every day he was a little bit brighter, the main thing was the tiredness - he was just wiped out.'

Dawn is now urging families to be vigilant and thoroughly check any clothing left outside for beasties and bugs before wearing them.

Dawn said: 'It's made us all really think a bit more carefully [about checking clothing]. We inspect everything, even if it's been hanging on the line.

'What we don't want is to make people more scared of spiders and kill them - spiders are beautiful. Bear wants a tarantula as a pet, that's how much he loves spiders.

'We don't want people to think they have to kill every single spider that they see.

'Just be mindful of where they might be and shake things off - [if people come across them] take them outside rather than killing spiders.

'If someone is bitten, go and seek medical treatment.'  

False widow spider attacks increase in UK

Cases of noble false widow spider bites are on the rise in the UK and can be serious enough as to require hospital treatment, scientists have warned.

Despite having become one of the most common arachnids in many urban parts of the UK, the exact health threat they pose has long been a subject of debate.

Experts from the National University of Ireland, Galway, however, have shown that their venom can trigger reactions similar to those seen with true black widow bites.

In May, A student was left fighting for her life in hospital after a venomous spider bit her while she slept on holiday - leaving her with a golf ball sized lump.

Abby Tannetta, 18, had been staying at her parents' caravan in Cardigan Bay Holiday Park, Pembrokeshire, Wales, and was celebrating finishing college with a friend when she was bitten by what she believes was a false widow spider as she slept.

The student, from Caerphilly, Wales, soon woke up in the early hours of May 26 with a stabbing pain in her side and a giant spider next to her in the bed. 

Days later, Ms Tannetta was rushed to hospital for emergency surgery after doctors feared the young student could contract sepsis if the infection was not halted.  

Abby Tannetta (pictured), 18, from Caerphilly, Wales, had been staying at her parents' caravan in Cardigan Bay Holiday Park, Pembrokeshire, Wales, when she was bitten by what she believed to be a false widow spider 

The student was rushed to hospital where doctors drained the infected area and removed the lump. Pictured: The area of Ms Tannetta's arm which doctors had to repatch

In Hastings, East Sussex, Philip Oakley, 58, and Olivia Yip, 38, took on an old fruit and vegetable warehouse as a workshop for their lighting design and fashion work.

The couple soon noticed that it was crawling with false widow spiders, and in the five years they've owned the property they have been bitten three times.

The most recent was on April 19, when Philip was nipped on his middle finger, leaving him crying in pain.

Philip Oakley, 58, and wife are being terrorised by false widow spiders that have infested their workplace - with both being hospitalised by bites despite fumigating the place three times