In late July 2023 an unnamed 8-year-old boy in Vichuloma, near Oruro, Bolivia, found a black widow spider under a rock while playing near a river. Recognizing its red markings, he placed it on the back of his hand and allowed it to bite him, hoping to gain Spider-Man powers. He later captured the spider in a glass and took it home. Ernesto Vásquez, head of the Zoonotic Diseases Program of the Oruro Departmental Health Service, stated:
“The child, without considering the risks, picked it up and placed it on the back of his palm where the arachnid made the bite.” After recovery the boy confirmed his motive: he “wanted to become Spider-Man.”
The bite occurred on the weekend of July 29, 2023, in Vichuloma. Roughly two to three hours later the boy developed intense body aches and muscle contractions; he eventually told his mother what had happened. The same day he was taken first to a local health center in Vinto and then transferred as an emergency to Hospital General San Juan de Dios in Oruro, where clinicians confirmed black-widow envenomation and administered antivenom. His condition stabilized within about thirty minutes of treatment, and full recovery was reported. International coverage followed in early August 2023. This incident is distinct from a separate 2020 case involving three boys in Chayanta, Potosí.
Black widow (Latrodectus) venom contains the neurotoxin alpha-latrotoxin, which can produce severe localized pain, muscle cramps, abdominal pain, sweating and systemic effects. Children are more vulnerable. Prompt antivenom and supportive care usually lead to rapid improvement; fatalities are rare with modern treatment. Officials used the case to warn parents that these spiders “do not cause anyone to become Spider-Man on the contrary, they are putting lives at risk.”
The primary sources are based on the statements made by Vásquez/SEDES via EFE and covered by Newsweek (2 Aug 2023), Express, Inside Edition and Spanish media. The information on the symptoms, his treatment at hospital and quick recovery is corroborated. The unsubstantiated assertions made in some media include the statement that “the boy nearly died,” while he survived his medical emergency. The boy remains unnamed.
