A WELDER happily working away in a tiny Isle of Wight workshop had the fright of his life when he had an unexpected visitor — a big hairy tarantula!

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Andy Williams, who works for F1 Precision Engineers in Cothey Butts, Fishbourne, was doing some welding on some mesh fencing this morning (Thursday), then, just before lunch, he took off his protective mask.

That's when the 55-year-old was given quite a shock.

Andy, of Binstead, said: "I lifted my head shield and saw something out of the corner of my eye. It was a giant spider!

"It was on the workshop floor, less than six feet away.

"At first, I thought it wasn't real, then it started to walk towards me slowly — ambling along like spiders do.

"I didn't find it — it found me!"

Isle of Wight County Press: Andy, the Mexican Redknee tarantula, in a cardboard box.Andy, the Mexican Redknee tarantula, in a cardboard box. (Image: Andy Williams)

Isle of Wight County Press: The box Andy Williams put the tarantula in.The box Andy Williams put the tarantula in. (Image: Andy Williams)

It was identified as a Mexican Redknee tarantula — a most common and sought-after species from Mexico, desirable for its striking appearance, long life span and docile nature and its bite is not considered dangerous to people.

But Andy did not know that.

"I was scared. It was one big spider — about the size of my hand. So I grabbed a long piece of metal and coaxed it into a cardboard box," continued Andy. 

"It was a shock to the system. I didn't know what to do. What are you supposed to do with a big tarantula? It's not supposed to be here. So I put it in a box and contacted the Ryde Information Noticeboard."

He made some holes in the box for the spider to breathe through, closed the lid and marked it 'Spider — Big'.

Isle of Wight County Press: Welder, Andy Williams, who made the shocking discovery.Welder, Andy Williams, who made the shocking discovery. (Image: Andy Williams)

Isle of Wight County Press: The tarantula on the floor of the workshop where Andy Williams was welding.The tarantula on the floor of the workshop where Andy Williams was welding. (Image: Andy Williams)

He even gave it a name. "I call it Andy. Well, I found it!"

He then spoke to the Wildheart Animal Sanctuary in Sandown (the former Isle of Wight Zoo), who said they were unable to take it, but who confirmed it was best to keep it in a box, in darkness, and it would just "curl up and go to sleep".

When left in the wild, the Mexican Redknee spider lives in forested areas, where it makes burrows under rocks and tree roots to hide from predators and await passing prey.

The spider had either escaped from the home of a local 'exotic animal' collector, or was set free. 

"It's come a long way. It's from Mexico," said Andy, who managed to trace the owner of the spider within hours of posting his appeal on the Ryde Information Noticeboard on Facebook.

"The guy is on holiday abroad at the moment, but someone's going to pick it up for him.

"He only lives about 500 metres from the workshop. He lost the spider about a week ago." 

A local pet shop in Ryde has agreed to look after it until the owner's friend can collect it.

"I'm glad Andy can be reunited with its owner. It'll be one happy spider," said Andy.