You can commonly see spiders in both horror movies and haunted houses. Whenever people spot these creepy crawlies lurking around their own abode, ear-deafening shrieks and shoes being thrown around are sure to be heard and seen. Their startling and unpredictable movements cause people to cringe upon sighting even just one of them inside their homes.
The diverse environment of the United States serves as a habitat to various species of spiders that are either cute and lethal or boring and safe. The boring and safe type usually pose minimal to no harm towards home dwellers aside from the nasty looking web. The cute and lethal type are the ones to watch out for, they pose a threat to the dwellers but usually are the ones mistaken to be safe because of their colorful and inviting aura.
Check out these cute yet lethal types of spiders below that may be residing in your own home. These were ranked from least to most lethal.
Black House Spider
Black House Spider is about 1/2 inch in body length and of a dark brown to black velvet textured appearance. Usually found in secluded locations such as window framing, under eaves, gutters, in brickwork, sheds, toilets, and among rocks as it prefers dry habitats. The lacy and messy web easily attracts their prey – moths, flies, mosquitoes, and other insects.
The bite of the Black House Spider is poisonous but not immediately lethal. People bitten may experience severe pain around the bite site, heavy sweating, muscular pains, vomiting, headaches, and giddiness. Seek first aid and medical attention after being bitten.
Wolf Spider
Wolf Spider is a brown, black, or greyish-beige colored spider with an elongated body of over an inch paired with hairy-looking legs and a distinct Union Jack impression on its back. Female wolf spiders carry their young on the back. It is commonly found in home garden areas with a silk-lined burrow that is covered or fenced around with leaves. It hunts its prey at night and can move rapidly whenever disturbed.
Although non-aggressive, wolf spider bites freely if it feels provoked thus should be considered dangerous to humans. The bite is excruciating and can cause allergic reactions to certain people. First aid and medical attention should be sought as soon as possible.
Hobo Spider
Hobo spider, an aggressive spider, is often confused as a brown recluse or wolf spider because of their brownish color. It measures roughly 1/3 to 2/3 inch in body length and 2/3 to 2 inches in leg span with abdomens having several chevron-shaped markings. Males have two large palpi (mouth parts) that look like boxing gloves while females have a larger and rounder abdomen.
The hobo spider is also known as funnel weaver as they build funnel-like webs and awaits for the unaware prey at the bottom of it. You may find them in dark areas of the basement, hiding under the fireplace woodpile, or inside your shoes and boots.
Despite being aggressive, it typically avoids humans. The bite of this spider usually occurs when it is accidentally “mashed.” When the venom is injected, the victim will immediately see redness around the bite and experience severe headaches. Other symptoms can include nausea, weakness, fatigue, temporary memory loss, and vision impairment. When left untreated after 24 hours, the bite will develop into a blister and break open with oozing ulceration and may cause tissue death. Be sure to seek medical attention if bitten to avoid further complications.
Brown Recluse Spider
Brown recluse spider is one of the most deadly spiders not only in the United States but the whole world. It measures 1/4 to 3/4 inch in body and also known as the violin or fiddle back spider because of the dark violin shape markings seen on its back. Unlike most spiders that have eight eyes, the brown recluse only has six eyes arranged in pairs, one pair in front and a pair on either side.
The brown recluse spider is a slow-moving, retiring spider that wanders about in dim areas. You can find them indoors in basements, attics, crawl spaces, between walls, in furniture, and even in clothing, footwear, and beds. It bites upon being trapped against someone’s skin by clothing, bed sheets, or footwear.
The bite of brown recluse spider can be very destructive to human flesh as its venom contains a cytotoxin that can affect the tissue at the bite site. Medical treatment is needed, as serious reactions from the venom can occur. Symptoms may include but are not limited to chills, fever, rash, pain, and nausea. Children are more sensitive to spider bites than healthy adults and may suffer life-threatening reactions, such as massive tissue loss and the subsequent infection.
Black Widow Spider
Black widow spider is a notorious spider that can be identified by the usually shiny black 1/2 inch long body and red hourglass-shaped marking on its abdomen. Three distinct and poisonous species of the black widow spider are found in the United States, namely Southern black widow, Western black widow, and Northern black widow. This spider is more aggressive than other spiders and should always be approached with extreme caution.
Black widow spider’s favorite place is an old fashioned wood-made house. It can be found in undisturbed, cluttered areas like in woodpiles, rubble piles, under stones, in hollow stumps, crawl spaces, basements, garages, sheds, and mailboxes.
Despite being small, black widow spider’s venom is extremely dangerous to humans and other animals. The pain around the bite area can be excruciating or may go unnoticed and fatal, especially to the young and elderly. A small amount of venom can cause serious illness. The poison attacks the nervous system and causes systemic envenomation. This usually results in headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, pyrexia, and hypertension. If a black widow bites you, go straight to the emergency room and tell them you suspect it was a black widow spider bite. First aid and medical attention should be sought as soon as possible, especially if you have a heart condition or other heart problems.
Scary as it seems but may this list remind everyone to exercise caution and awareness at all times, especially in working at dark and secluded places. They see us as threats just as we see them as threats too and one way to defend themselves is through biting. But after all of this, at least spiders don’t fly, right?
If there are dangerous spiders in your home, the Local Bug Guy is a spider exterminator specialist who serves both Temecula and Murrieta, they can get rid of them for you. For fast help, call us at 951-444-8284.