“Big boy” funnel-web was initially discovered in the early 2000s, but has now been officially confirmed by Australian scientists. The new huge variation was named Atrax christenseni in honour of the discovery of the creature in Newcastle - which is over 100 miles from Sydney.

The first person to discover the Aussie spider, Kane Christensen, has warned people not to approach it, citing its massive fangs and glands that produce 'copious amounts of venom'

An international team of scientists has revised the classification of Australia's most famous spider. With a bite more deadly to humans than that of any other spider, the iconic Sydney funnel-web has long been considered a single species,

A larger and more venomous species of one of the world's deadliest spiders has been confirmed by Australian scientists. Nicknamed 'big boy', it can grow up to 9cm (3.54 inches) compared with 5cm (1.97 inches) for the more common Sydney funnel-web.

The deadly 3.54-inch-long spider Atrax christenseni is among the most dangerously venomous spiders for humans.

"If you are bitten by a funnel-web spider, call an ambulance and go straight to hospital," researcher Geoff Isbister said.

Scientists in Australia have discovered a larger, more venomous species of one of the world's deadliest spiders, the Sydney funnel-web spider.

A new bigger and more dangerous version of the world's deadliest spider, the funnel web, has been identified in the land down under – and it even has longer fangs and more venom