# Red-Striped Black Spider



## sippinjoes

Moving firewood and stones I discovered TONS of bugs and a snake on my North Alabama residence. I found one very interesting, a black spider with a red strip down it's back. Same body as a Black Widow. The stripe was orangish-red and the tip-top section of the stripe was detached from the longer bottom portion of stripe. Anyone else in SE USA see these?


----------



## nap

yes, sadly, my grandfather did, just shortly before he died.
just kidding.

was it anything like this?


----------



## sippinjoes

Similar. It was very small and I squished it rather quickly. The pick I attached is spot on (stripe on) with what I saw. A gap in the line at the top and has the ability to make your skin crawl by looking at it


----------



## nap

looks like a black widow. As I researched this, there are apparently some with red on their back as well as the hourglass shape in the underside of the abdomen.


btw; the spider I posted is a redback spider from Australia which is apparently a fairly close relative to our black widow.

there are apparently 3 species in the US that are considered to be black widow

http://exequy.wordpress.com/2010/11/09/black-widow-spider/



> Currently, there are three recognized species of black widow found in North America: The southern black widow (L. mactans), the northern black widow (L. variolus), and the western black widow (L. hesperus). As the name indicates, the southern widow is primarily found (and is indigenous to) the southeastern United States, ranging from Florida to New York, and west to Texas, Oklahoma, and they run particularly rampant in parts of Arizona. The northern widow is found primarily in the northeastern U.S. and southeastern Canada (only on the Bruce Peninsula), though its ranges overlap that of L. mactans quite a bit. The western widow is found in the western half of the United States, as well as in southwestern Canada and much of Mexico.


----------



## DangerMouse

well dang nap... I always thought the only poisonous spider we had up here our way was the brown recluse!

DM


----------



## nap

DangerMouse said:


> well dang nap... I always thought the only poisonous spider we had up here our way was the brown recluse!
> 
> DM


http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10370_12145_12204-36489--,00.html

now, the DNR does claim that the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake is the only venomous snake in Michigan. Not sure I believe that one. 

http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10370_12145_12201---,00.html


----------



## sippinjoes

Strangely enough I can't say I've seen a brown recluse, but I have seen widows with abdomens as big as my thumb nail.


----------



## DangerMouse

What's so strange about that? They ARE called a RECLUSE! :laughing:
I've never seen one either!.... and hope I never do!

DM


----------



## DangerMouse

***STOMP***

spoke too soon.....

DM


----------



## Red Squirrel

Wow that spider needs to be put on a weight loss program!


----------



## DangerMouse

Red Squirrel said:


> Wow that spider needs to be put on a weight loss program!


"Is YOUR spider too fat? That's right folks, you too can have the spider of your dreams using the 45 second microwave diet! Simply put your spider in a microwave-safe bowl and set the timer for 45 seconds to see amazing weight loss results!" (not responsible for dehydrated corpses or exploding spider bodies. 
We DO, however, guarantee they will make NO MORE WEBS!!!, EVER!!!!) :laughing:
(this should make squirrels everywhere quite happy.)

DM


----------



## Leah Frances

DangerMouse said:


> "Is YOUR spider too fat? That's right folks, you too can have the spider of your dreams using the 45 second microwave diet! Simply put your spider in a microwave-safe bowl and set the timer for 45 seconds to see amazing weight loss results!" (not responsible for dehydrated corpses or exploding spider bodies.
> We DO, however, guarantee they will make NO MORE WEBS!!!, EVER!!!!) :laughing:
> (this should make squirrels everywhere quite happy.)
> 
> DM


Wow!! You better hope this doesn't get forwarded to PETA... Haha.

When I was a little girl my Mom read us a book called 'Be Nice to Spiders'. So I'm even nice to the black widows. 

We also have big 'uns in Maryland. But I think they're pretty.


----------



## nap

Leah Frances said:


> We also have big 'uns in Maryland. But I think they're pretty.


I don't think I have ever heard a person say that _after _they have been bitten though.


----------



## Leah Frances

nap said:


> I don't think I have ever heard a person say that after they have been bitten though.


You're probably right.... :laughing:


----------



## sippinjoes

Don't like spiders. They serve a purpose, but it is best be served far from me. I have a 2.5 year old daughter who I don't ever want to see bitten by my over populous black widows (with red stripes).


----------



## Leah Frances

To be fair and honest. My kindness to spiders does have a limit.... They come in the shower with me they're getting washed down the drain - no question about it.


----------



## nap

Leah Frances said:


> To be fair and honest. My kindness to spiders does have a limit.... They come in the shower with me they're getting washed down the drain - no question about it.


I have something for you. Be careful about rinsing them down the drain.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/58807/night-gallery-a-fear-of-spidersjuniormarmalade-winethe-academy


----------



## Leah Frances

nap said:


> I have something for you. Be careful about rinsing them down the drain.
> 
> http://www.hulu.com/watch/58807/night-gallery-a-fear-of-spidersjuniormarmalade-winethe-academy


NOOOOOOOOOO!!!! why, god? WHY???? My eyes are burning. I am scarred now - maybe forever.

I do <3 Rod Sterling, though. Watched Planet of the Apes tonight. 

:laughing:


----------



## jlmran

DangerMouse said:


> What's so strange about that? They ARE called a RECLUSE! :laughing:
> I've never seen one either!.... and hope I never do!
> 
> DM


We have "fiddlebacks" EVERYWHERE here(Oklahoma). Some are less reclusive than others. The bites are ugly.


----------



## Leah Frances

We ran into this little guy in a pool in Puerto Rico: http://www.arachnopets.com/tarantulas/tgallery/alaeta01.htm

DH rescued him. Turns out it was a baby Puerto Rican tarantula


----------



## Willie T

nap said:


> I don't think I have ever heard a person say that _after _they have been bitten though.


I've had only one serious spider bite. They think it might have been a brown recluse. Never saw it nor felt the bite.

As time went by (maybe three days) what I thought was just some kind of bug bite grew worse. Eventually caused a 1/2" hole in my arm, with a hollow below it almost the size of a regular marble.

Took a couple of months of daily visits to the doctor to heal it.

Any spider that comes anywhere near me today, DIES!


----------



## sippinjoes

*Got Another One*

Okay, I found another one while working some more in my back yard. Took a pic of the underside and the top. The pictures I took from the back didn't show the strip, but from the underside shot, you can see how it continued around until the hour glass.

I kicked it out into the driveway because I didn't want to stomp it in my garage and I lost it...I HOPE IT DIES!!!!!!


----------



## Red Squirrel

Ahh it looks cute all tucked in like that.


I would still step on it.


----------



## nap

check out the under body markings description here

http://kaston.transy.edu/widow.html


----------



## sippinjoes

Didn't realize there were so stinking many variations of those little beasts. Guess mine is a typical Southern Black Widow and the markings on the back are just an expression of it's age and/or personal preference. Either way, I know to kill on sight!!!! Thanks for all the feedback everyone.

:thumbup:

Joe


----------



## concretemasonry

If you have doubt, kill it. there is no shortage of spiders.

I can understand the terror from not knowing for sure or just know a little bit. While traveling in India, my friend thought he was bitten by Brown Recluse that he saw on the floor at the Mumbai(Bambay) airport terminal after feeling something on his arm. He was trained while being in the Special Forces in the military. He could not catch it.

After 5 minutes an area on his arm started to swell, so he went to the NWA/KLM counter and they had a doctor there within 5 minutes (never far from a doctor in India) even at 10:00 PM. The doctor examined and said it looked like it was just a mosquito bite. My friend felt relieved and went to liquor store in the terminal and bought a 6 pack of beer and a bottle of whiskey to relax with in the waiting area for 2 hours before we boarded. He admitted he was not 100% sure and was relieved.

About 5 minutes before the flight, he was paged and the ground service wanted to verify what seat he would be in (reference for the flight crew on the situation). That rattled him totally during the 8 hour flight to Amsterdam and he was difficult to be with and calm him. When we finally landed and said he wished he had killed it and saved it just to know and be safe.

In a crisis, it is difficult to react quickly, sanely and logically, but there is not a shortage of spiders.

Dick


----------



## nap

concretemasonry said:


> If you have doubt, kill it. there is no shortage of spiders.


I would have to agree. In some of the research for this thread, I did some reading as well. What I remember was about the northern version but I suspect all 3 species are similar. 

It said that a bite on a healthy adult is not considered fatal, it can make you sick. They did warn that a bite on the elderly, infirm, or children can be quite serious so I would definately be on guard, especially if you have children around.

here is from Wiki:



> Not all adult female black widows exhibit the red hourglass on their abdomen—some may have a pair of red spots or have no marking at all, but any markings that are present are bright red. Adult male black widows are a quarter the size of the female, and are usually gray or brown rather than black and red; while they may sometimes have an hourglass marking on their abdomen, it is usually yellow or white, not red. The bite of a male black widow is not considered dangerous to humans; it is the bite of the adult female black widow from her much larger venom sacs that has given this spider its dangerous reputation. While there is great variation in specifics by species and by gender, any spider exhibiting a red hourglass on the abdomen and having a shiny black body is an adult female black widow.


----------



## Team-48

It's a male Black Widow.


----------



## Arky217

A black widow spider bite is no fun.

I kept my gloves that I use to tend to the wood stove right by the wood that I carry in.
One Thursday morning when I put on the gloves, I felt like I mashed something soft with the left ring finger; I didn't feel the bite at all, so I though nothing of it.

After about an hour, it begin to itch.
After a couple of hours, it begin to burn a little.
By that night, it was like my hand was on fire. No amount of over the counter pain pills helped at all. Still not knowing what it was, I put up with it for another day and night. By Sat. morning, I just couldn't stand the constant burning any longer so I went to the only clinic open on Sat. Though I never did find the spider, the doctor confirmed it was a black widow. Doc gave me a shot of something and some really powerful pain relief pills that finally gave me some relief from the burning and let me sleep.
It took about a week to fully recover. The finger never really did swell very much; the venom attacks the nervous system.

Arky


----------



## SeniorSitizen

This is what the male black widow looks like here at the ranch.


----------



## ratherbefishin'

Team-48 said:


> It's a male Black Widow.


No, it's a common misconception that markings on the back indicate male, but completely untrue. The pic in post #22 is a female lactrodectus variolus from the southern part of it's range.
There are a lot of misconceptions about widow spiders. The three major species contain a buttload of sub-species and colorations, so the wisest thing is to look at body shape. If you think it might be....squash it...there are plenty of beneficial spiders to take it's place.


----------



## ratherbefishin'

Fairview said:


> This is what the male black widow looks like here at the ranch.


Yep, note the pedipalps...is that a western?


----------



## Oso954

Looks like a Brown Widow to me.


----------

