A Black Widow spider has been found in a car in Worcestershire.

The deadly spider was brought to the Stratford Butterfly Farm yesterday, in Stratford upon Avon, after being found in a car imported from Arizona, USA.

It was found in the car at Strensham in Worcestershire by a man who immediately called the RSPCA.

The RSPCA then contacted Vale Wildlife Rescue at Beckford in Gloucestershire who in turn called upon the services of the Stratford Butterfly Farm.

Richard Lamb manager at Stratford Butterfly farm said: "It is being kept on its own in a cage that is double sealed. It is in a purpose built cage for dangerous invertebrates."

He added that on many occasions the butterfly farm has taken in black widows so the staff feel quite at ease with the new visitor.

The spider is renowned for being incredibly tough and likes dark crevices hence it was easy for the spider to remain unnoticed in the car. It appears completely unscathed after its travels from America.

The Black Widow, which is a female, is now thousands of miles from its original home in Arizona. It has been named "Dorothy" by the staff, and is the only spider of this species at the Stratford Butterfly Farm.

There are 31 species of Black Widow spider found in the warmer continents around the world. This particular species, which is known as Latrodectus Mactans', originates from Southern USA and Mexico and usually lives in buildings, plantations, rubbish dumps and stony places.

Black Widows are known to be one of the most poisonous spiders in the world with venom 15 times more potent than a rattlesnake. The venom, although potentially lethal is only administered in minute quantities, so when diluted within a healthy human body it rarely causes death. In the U.S between 1950 and 1989 only 63 deaths were reported, about 2-3% of recorded bites. Black Widows, although very poisonous do not attack readily, in fact they are not aggressive at all and will only bite if they are frightened.

Female Black Widow spiders are notorious for cannibalising their mates after copulation to ensure they are well fed to get through pregnancy. Females can lay up to 900 eggs in an egg sack. The female spider is satin-black and usually has a bright red 'hour-glass' marking on the underside.