# aaAHHH, What kind of spider is this!? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 26, 2010, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359 "2010-10-26T00:12:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Grateful-UnDead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ccd318/32.png) [@Grateful-UnDead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grateful-UnDead)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2010, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/21 "2010-10-27T00:09:44Z")
> [@Skara\_Brae](#): > > I remember when I saw my first Black Widow when I moved to southern California. I totally freaked out about it (it was in my garage). > > The locals kindly explained to me that you don’t need to worry about Black Widows because if they bite you it will hurt really bad, and so you would know to go to the hospital. It was those Brown Recluses you had to worry about, since then you would not know if you had been bitten until chucks of your skin start falling off… > > :eek: As in most of the world, in Australia outhouses used to be pretty common. The underside of the seat was a very popular place of residence for the Australian variant of the Black Widow, known there as “The Red Back”. My Australian friends tell me it was a relatively common occurrence, while seated on the throne, that the man of the house would have certain dangling bits of his anatomy bitten by a Red Back. Apparently, when this happened, the excruciating pain left no doubt at all that he had been bitten. Gives whole new meaning to the experience of hanging out. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2010, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/22 "2010-10-27T00:54:17Z")
> [@Grateful-UnDead](#): > > My Australian friends tell me it was a relatively common occurrence, while seated on the throne, that the man of the house would have certain dangling bits of his anatomy bitten by a Red Back. I am **SOOOO** glad my Father did not follow through on his plan to immigrate after serving their during WWII. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2010, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/23 "2010-10-27T03:48:26Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I am **SOOOO** glad my Father did not follow through on his plan to immigrate after serving their during WWII. 🙂 Actually, Widow vs Junk was common in America in the days of outhouses, it’s not an Oz thing. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2010, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/24 "2010-10-27T03:54:26Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > Actually, Widow vs Junk was common in America in the days of outhouses, it’s not an Oz thing. Thanks for your support. How does a species exist in Australia and the USA? ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2010, 6:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/25 "2010-10-27T06:54:56Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Thanks for your support. > How does a species exist in Australia and the USA? Seriously? It’s the genus, Latrodectus, which contains all the widow species, including the Australian, L. Hasselti, also known as the ‘Redback.’ > **[Latrodectus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latrodectus)** > > 35, see text > Latrodectus is a broadly distributed genus of spiders informally called the widow spiders, with several species that are commonly known as the true widows. This group is composed of those often loosely called black widow spiders, brown widow spiders, and similar spiders. > A member of the family Theridiidae, this genus contains 34 species, which include several North American "black widows" (southern black widow Latrodectus mactans, western black widow Latrodectus hesperus, and nor... ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2010, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/26 "2010-10-27T09:14:51Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > How does a species exist in Australia and the USA? Lots of species do, usually the really cosmopolitan species like peregrine falcons and bracken. The falcons of course travel by flying. The ferns disperse via spores. The spiders likely disperse by a similar method to the ferns, by sending the juveniles skywards. However there’s a bit of a debate about whether redbacks are native to Australia. They only show up 100 years after European settlement, initially at a seaport. Added to that they are rarely if ever found away from human structures. So there’s some debate about when and how they arrived on the island. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2010, 9:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/27 "2010-10-27T09:30:11Z")
> [@Blake](#): > > However there’s a bit of a debate about whether redbacks are native to Australia. They only show up 100 years after European settlement, initially at a seaport. Is the same true of New Zealand’s katipo? ---
**Author:** ![Bongmaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Bongmaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bongmaster)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2010, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/28 "2010-10-27T15:28:29Z")
> [@Grateful-UnDead](#): > > Having said that, what it the problem here? I have all kinds of Black Widows living in my garden and basement; I don’t bother them, and they don’t bother me. And they eat a lot of bugs. Are you serious? I guess they won’t bother you until you’re walking around barefoot one day and accidentally step on one of its legs and it bites filling your blood with poisonous venom. I wouldn’t want to share my living space with such a creature. ---
**Author:** ![Grateful-UnDead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ccd318/32.png) [@Grateful-UnDead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grateful-UnDead)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2010, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/29 "2010-10-27T23:30:07Z")
> [@Bongmaster](#): > > Are you serious? I guess they won’t bother you until you’re walking around barefoot one day and accidentally step on one of its legs and it bites filling your blood with poisonous venom. I wouldn’t want to share my living space with such a creature. Sure I’m serious. First, I never walk around in the basement or the yard in bare feet. Second, Black Widows are rarely found anywhere where they are likely to be stepped on; they live in webs in sheltered places and cavities. If you stick an unprotected hand or foot into a dark cavity, then you are a prime contender for a Darwin Award. Third, Widows only bite if you really make an effort to disturb them; they invariably try to get away or play dead. They will bite only as a last resort. If you get bitten, it is usually because you didn’t allow them to escape. And fourth, my house and yard is full of all kinds of other spiders; they all act to keep each other in check. They also keep the bugs down. Fifth, I guess you wouldn’t want me to tell you about the permanent residents I have on my bedroom ceiling? Or how I keep the roaches down in my kitchen??? Back to my original post; if you leave any kind of creature alone, whether that be spider or human, it will leave you alone. ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/30 "2010-10-28T00:09:36Z")
> [@Grateful-UnDead](#): > > If you stick an unprotected hand or foot into a dark cavity, then you are a prime contender for a Darwin Award. > … > Back to my original post; if you leave any kind of creature alone, whether that be spider or human, it will leave you alone. Which is of course utter nonsense. Most people who get bitten by widows are doing really dangerous and stupid things like picking up garbage cans and lawn chairs. Widows absolutely love the angles in plastic objects of that sort, and because such objects are commonly left outside and because the only way to pick them up is by sticking an unprotected hand into the angle, people get bitten. And the idea that if you leave any animal alone it will leave you alone is simply too ignorant for words. Anyone who has had any experience at all with real animals knows how silly such a suggestion is. ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/31 "2010-10-28T00:12:08Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > Is the same true of New Zealand’s katipo? I don’t know, but I would guess so. It seems unlikely that an animal would find its way to NZ but bypass Australia. Though I guess that it’s possible that it arrived unassisted via South America. ---
**Author:** ![deb2world](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@deb2world](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/deb2world)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/32 "2010-10-28T01:21:19Z")
I cannot see the pictures (photobucket blocked). But one thing with black widow spiders is their webs are stronger then other spiders. So feel the web, if it feels different than the regular house spiders web it is probably a widow. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/33 "2010-10-28T01:51:43Z")
> [@deb2world](#): > > So feel the web, Won’t she jump out and bite your ass? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Grateful-UnDead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ccd318/32.png) [@Grateful-UnDead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grateful-UnDead)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/34 "2010-10-28T02:32:49Z")
> [@Blake](#): > > Which is of course utter nonsense. > > Most people who get bitten by widows are doing really dangerous and stupid things like picking up garbage cans and lawn chairs. Widows absolutely love the angles in plastic objects of that sort, and because such objects are commonly left outside and because the only way to pick them up is by sticking an unprotected hand into the angle, people get bitten. So? Seems to me that if you coexist in an area with Widows, the reasonable thing to do is to wear gloves when moving objects around. I do. > [@](#): > > And the idea that if you leave any animal alone it will leave you alone is simply too ignorant for words. Anyone who has had any experience at all with real animals knows how silly such a suggestion is. Really? Since your experience is apparently markedly different from mine, could you please provide some cites for that? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/35 "2010-10-28T02:41:22Z")
> [@Grateful-UnDead](#): > > So? Seems to me that if you coexist in an area with Widows, the reasonable thing to do is to wear gloves when moving objects around. I do. I’m going to put on gloves to take out the trash or move a lawn chair? No way. ---
**Author:** ![Grateful-UnDead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ccd318/32.png) [@Grateful-UnDead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grateful-UnDead)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/36 "2010-10-28T03:07:55Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I’m going to put on gloves to take out the trash or move a lawn chair? > No way. No problemo. Darwinian selection in action! ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/37 "2010-10-28T03:10:21Z")
> [@Grateful-UnDead](#): > > No problemo. Darwinian selection in action! Horse pucky. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/38 "2010-10-28T03:13:34Z")
> [@Grateful-UnDead](#): > > Really? Since your experience is apparently markedly different from mine, could you please provide some cites for that? I dunno. The surfer who was minding his own business a few days ago off the coast of California and got mauled by a shark may be have something to say about that. I mean, are you serious? ---
**Author:** ![Grateful-UnDead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ccd318/32.png) [@Grateful-UnDead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grateful-UnDead)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/39 "2010-10-28T03:21:30Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I dunno. The surfer who was minding his own business a few days ago off the coast of California and got mauled by a shark may be have something to say about that. > > I mean, are you serious? OK, good point. So, other than people who accidentally ended up in the food chain…? Remember also, that more sharks are eaten by people than people are eaten by sharks. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2010, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359/40 "2010-10-28T03:22:52Z")
> [@Grateful-UnDead](#): > > OK, good point. > > So, other than people who accidentally ended up in the food chain…? > > Remember also, that more sharks are eaten by people than people are eaten by sharks. But more people are bitten by spiders than bite spiders. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aaahhh-what-kind-of-spider-is-this/558359.md?page=3)