A father of two, remembered by loved ones as a “brilliant dad,” died unexpectedly after being bitten by a venomous spider he had purchased online.
Mark Anthony Kirby, 38, of Prescot in Merseyside, England, passed away on Aug. 2. His ex-partner, Kayleigh Gill, told The Liverpool Echo that he developed flu-like symptoms following the bite.
Gill, who shares two children with Kirby, said he had been buying pet spiders online in the weeks before his death. He was bitten by one of them shortly before joining her and other relatives on a family trip to Scotland. Despite feeling unwell, she recalled, Kirby was still joking and “playing pranks” during a group dinner.
After returning home on July 26, Kirby — father to an 18-year-old son and 17-year-old daughter — began suffering from fever and aching limbs, Gill told the Echo. On Aug. 2, he called Gill’s sister to say he was struggling to breathe before collapsing.
Paramedics responded, but Kirby did not survive. An official cause of death has not yet been confirmed.
Gill said the family strongly believes the spider bite was the cause. “I’m in complete shock,” she shared. She added that Kirby had become “obsessed” with the five spiders he bought online just weeks earlier.
“He told me about the bite and I said he needed to go to hospital but he didn’t,” Gill explained. “People shouldn’t be able to buy these spiders online — people should need licenses to own them.”
Kirby’s death was announced on Aug. 13 in a Facebook post from Debbie Bennett Independent Funeral Directors, which also shared funeral details for Aug. 19, noting he “will be very sadly missed by all his loving family and friends.”
“He was funny, caring, outgoing and such a people person,” Gill said. “He was a brilliant dad to our two children and was always the life and soul of the party.”
She added that while Kirby may have purchased the spiders for companionship, he had once been afraid of insects. “Even though we had split up, we were best friends. He put our children first.”
It remains unclear what type of spiders Kirby had purchased.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only two venomous spiders are found in the United States — the black widow and the brown recluse. Both are “usually not aggressive” but may bite if threatened. While death from spider bites is “extremely rare” in the U.S., symptoms can include fever, chills, breathing difficulties, radiating pain, and itching.
In the United Kingdom, the Natural History Museum notes there are around 650 spider species, 12 of which can bite humans. Only two or three are capable of delivering a “significant or unpleasant bite.” The museum advises handling spiders “with care and respect.”
