More than 3,000 tarantulas found in socks in luggage at Peru airport

More than 3,000 tarantulas were discovered stuffed into socks packed in the luggage of three different travelers as they prepared to board a flight.

The spiders were found on November 3 in three suitcases at an airport in Callao, Peru, according to Reuters.

The luggage belonged to two German citizens and a Polish citizen who were preparing to fly to Germany, according to SERFOR, Peru’s National Forestry and Wildlife Service.

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Authorities opened an investigation after receiving an anonymous tip. When authorities searched the suitcases, they found between 15 and 22 socks packed inside each one, concealing spiders of different species and in varying numbers, Reuters reported.

The seizure involved tarantulas at different stages of development, from eggs and young spiders to adults.

A variety of tarantulas of different sizes were discovered hiding in socks packed in three suitcases at an airport in Callao, Peru. (Reuters)

Cora Suarez, forest wildlife control technician with SERFOR, said these creatures can be valuable to collectors.

“These species are attractive for their colors, for their size and, more than anything, because they can be aimed at collectors,” Suarez said in Spanish.

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The three travelers were arrested while checking in for their flight. They were arrested by Peruvian environmental crimes police, according to Reuters.

Authorities said the travelers were now the subject of criminal proceedings by an environmental prosecutor’s office.

The seizure included tarantulas, photographed, at various stages of development, from eggs and young spiderlings to adults. (Reuters)

Keith Jeffries, vice president of Orlando-based K2 Security Screening Group and former federal director of security at Los Angeles International Airport, previously told Fox News Digital that the money could lead to unusual wildlife smuggling attempts.

“If there is a market for this product, people will try to smuggle it in,” Jeffries said.

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“We’ve seen this many times before,” he added. “This happens more frequently than any of us would like.”

Jeffries said screening responsibilities at the airport can vary depending on the agency and what officers are tasked with finding.

When authorities searched the suitcases, they found between 15 and 22 socks packed inside each one, concealing spiders of different species and in varying numbers, as pictured above. (Reuters)

In the United States, for example, Transportation Security Administration agents primarily search for aviation security threats such as weapons and explosives rather than specifically searching for smuggled wildlife, he said.

The discovery of a tarantula is not the first time authorities have discovered living creatures hidden in socks in travelers’ luggage.

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In August, a 23-year-old man was arrested at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport after authorities discovered about 200 lizards packed in 22 pairs of socks in his suitcase, Fox News Digital previously reported.

Nine of the reptiles were Mexican alligator lizards, an endangered species subject to international trade restrictions. Some could sell for hundreds of dollars each in Japan.

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Jeffries previously recalled other wildlife discoveries during his time at TSA, including exotic turtles and nearly 100 exotic birds found in checked luggage.