Spiders (with pics)

Originally Posted by strange_wings

It might be worth noting that black widow bites are not deadly as they're made out to be. The only problem is if you're allergic to their venom. Otherwise the side effect is just a lot of pain.

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I had read that just yesterday actually, but I'm a big sissy when it comes to pain, so that would still not go over well with me. Or with anyone who happens to be around me at the time.

Originally Posted by Kailie

Ewwwwwwwwww! I don't even know why I clicked on this thread as I HATE spiders/bugs of any kind.

Sucker for punishment I guess.

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That's why I even typed in the title that there were pics! I know if someone else posted it I probably wouldn't have looked.

Originally Posted by DarkMavis

I know there are black widows around here though, I saw a few outside my old work. In any case I should remember to always wear my gardening gloves when digging and poking around!

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They're pretty evenly spread across North America, but not all of them are the same. I think you'd have one or two subspecies out there.

Several years ago a family friend was bitten while helping take out a window ac unit. The bite was bad enough but it was the antivenin that they gave her that nearly killed her! For some reason she was allergic to something in that. It caused seizures and an anaphylactic reaction.

Sorry to make you look at more pictures - unfortunately it was either rely on your memory or have you try to get a dorsum picture for me. Do know that these are very good spiders. They're not particularly aggressive, have a harmless bite, and eat a lot of mosquitoes (mosquitoes that could spread heartworm and worse).

No, no, it's ok you made me look at spider pics... I'll get over it eventually.. (kidding, really, i joke!)

So do black widows have the red mark on the back or the belly?

And I guess can we agree to call the stripey-leg orangey spiders in my yard Orbweavers? They have more spots rather than the stripes on their body like stephanietx's spider has. Then I can call them that to other people and act like I'm cool and know all about spiders.

Originally Posted by DarkMavis

No, no, it's ok you made me look at spider pics... I'll get over it eventually..

(kidding, really, i joke!)

So do black widows have the red mark on the back or the belly?

And I guess can we agree to call the stripey-leg orangey spiders in my yard Orbweavers? They have more spots rather than the stripes on their body like stephanietx's spider has. Then I can call them that to other people and act like I'm cool and know all about spiders.

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Depends on the subspecies of widow. Your typical female black widow only has the hour glass on the underside of the abdomen - it can be red or orange, occasionally a more faded yellow color, though that's not as common in black widows. Your male widows have a pattern on the back of their abdomen, are smaller, and lighter colored.
Brown widows have the hour glass, too, though it can more commonly be yellow. They have a pattern on their abdomen though they can be dark enough that it's hard to see it. They're just as venomous as black widow (and some think even more so) but don't deliver as much in a bite.

Then there's the european widows. We don't have those over here, of course. They have red markings on the back of their abdomen, too, and are actually very pretty (IMO).

If you see a black spider with any red or orange spots on it's back, you're likely seeing a black jumping spider. They can get quite large but are very fat and have thicker short legs. If cornered they'd bite, but they're harmless. They do make some webs but are primarily a hunting spider that will eat anything they come across and think they can take on - including other spiders. They're among some of the smartest spiders, too, with the ability to plan ahead several steps when hunting. They can also become so used to humans that they don't run (far) from them.


I'm still betting that you're seeing a western spotted orbweaver - just by the fact that they're very very common in your area.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

It doesn't look like a garden spider to me. Argiope tend to have that distinctive extra webbing in the center that they rest on. The body doesn't look right either. (I can see how most might be mistaking it for argiope trifasciata though, but the two don't like that much alike)

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yeah, we have an Argiope (who we have named R.G. - we are very weird) hanging between the deck and the house and doesn't look anything like that. Web is very distinctive. I need to get a picture of it, he's very beautiful (as spiders go).

Well I took a walk around the backyard this afternoon, looking for spiders. There are webs and web strings all over the plants and trees which is annoying but I guess good for catching the other bugs around. I didn't see any hanging around, but then I didn't get all up in the leaves and branches, as I wouldn't want to get too close.. However, I have seen that there is a brown spider who sits in the middle of a dense funnel-web on the corner of the one garage window.. I can't get a good pic of it though. It can stay there, it's out of the way. I hope it catches lots of gnats/midges/whatever those tiny fly things are.

Originally Posted by DarkMavis

However, I have seen that there is a brown spider who sits in the middle of a dense funnel-web on the corner of the one garage window.. I can't get a good pic of it though. It can stay there, it's out of the way. I hope it catches lots of gnats/midges/whatever those tiny fly things are.

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Funnel web spider (imagine that, simple name ). They look a bit like a wolf spider but aren't as bulky.

http://bugguide.net/node/view/1974

I'm familiar with most of your spiders; they're the bane of my existence, as my arachnophobic girlfriend's house is infested with them...

OP's spider looks like an orb weaver for sure. we've got one of those that has decided she likes to make HUGE webs- right across the top of the stairs onto the open front porch... -_- After I clear her away for the evening, there's a funnel-web that's decided to settle in behind the mailbox, not to mention about 7 others who live in my GF's dad's junk scattered on either side of the door. I have to either clear her web away for the night too, or hold the door open every time we go out that night if I'm feeling nice.

Once inside the house, there are always jumping spiders that sneak in through the window screens, but they're usually easy to shoo back out. Then there are some sort of cave spiders... God only knows where they came from because there are no caves for miles around GF's house, but they're there. They've been a mild annoyance for years having formed a nice little colony in the basement, but ever since the floods this spring when we had 2.5 feet of water down there, they've moved into the upstairs and I've yet to convince them to stay in the basement again.

The upside is that all of these guys are absolutely harmless, but barely a night goes by without me hearing GF scream from some other room and running in with a cup and index card to trap and relocate the offending arachnid. The only incident we've ever had with harmful spiders was a black widow inside the mailbox a few weeks ago, and I promptly killed her and made sure she didn't have any egg sacs. I don't advocate killing them just because they're there, but we have a year-old puppy who sticks her nose in EVERYTHING, and I just didn't trust her not to come back and settle somewhere she'd bite her.

If the spiders making the large webs by the house bother you go out with a flash light and a few jars. Collect them up and move them to the other side of the yard where they would have good places to string a large web out. Just make sure not to let them go too closely together.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

If the spiders making the large webs by the house bother you go out with a flash light and a few jars. Collect them up and move them to the other side of the yard where they would have good places to string a large web out. Just make sure not to let them go too closely together.

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I've tried; they all come right back! GF's dad works night shifts, so their porch light is the brightest light in the area all night and it's like a beacon to the damn things... lol

Sneak them over to the neighbor's yard? You're probably not seeing the exact same spiders.

haha, probably not, but relocating just opens the prime real estate up to new ones, so I just do my best to keep a spider-free path for GF to get in the house. I don't care if they're there at all, the light attracts all sorts of bugs other than them that they keep out of the house

What color light bulb are you using on that outdoor light? Yellow bulbs attract less insects because they can't see the yellow wave length very well.