Black Widow Spider

15 years ago

I was checking out a redbay for palamedes swallowtail caterpillars, and this was sitting at the top of the bush -

{{gwi:462615}}
I don't see these too often, so I thought I'd share.

Sherry

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Comments (3)

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
15 years ago
I've never seen an adult with the red legs. Was the upper abdominal coloring typical? If not, this could be a very young female. Juveniles are very different looking than the adults.

Great shot.
MissSherry
Original Author
15 years ago
I was wondering about that too, Dorie. I've only seen one other black widow spider, and I didn't remember the red legs. The first one also had a real round shape in the middle, whereas this one is sort of rectangular. I got a poor picture of the other one several years ago -
{{gwi:468996}}
When I saw her yesterday, she had turned over, and I noticed her topside had red on it. I went outside just a few minutes ago, and she was back in the "belly up" position. I'll try to get a picture of her topside later on when I can - I sure don't want to turn her over!
Sherry
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Thanks again everyone. If (or more likely when) I see another in my garden I will definitely post a picture. I have been dealing with these spiders for 12 years now, ever since we built our house in what was formerly farm land. We have our home and surrounding area sprayed regularly every 3 months to control for them but my garden is not in an area that is sprayed for obvious reasons. We have taken efforts to remove their habitat by getting rid of bricks, etc., that were used for landscaping and made lovely little homes for them but I don't know that we will ever be completely free of them. I don't scare easily but these things terrify me. I always wear gloves but now I am afraid to even work in there! Thank you for all of the suggestions. By the way, I called my pest control guy and asked for his opinion and he told me to spray liquid sevin dust every day until I don't see anymore. Scary much? :)
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I love it! I want one (or 2). As much as I would LOVE to pay $20 for this spider, I think $30 to $40 would be sellable. If you have an inexpensive source of supplies, and it doesn't take much time - for $20 they would sell like hotcakes. I think it would be good to vary them a bit so people feel like they are choosing their special one. Below is a link to a similar sized bug on etsy for $45. BTW, you can "like" things on etsy and in that way keep track of whether they sell or not. Just keep your own list of prices, cuz once its sold the price disappears. Your Dh could watch a few etsy bugs, write the prices and see if they sell to get an idea of what the market will bear. Here is a link that might be useful: Metal bug on etsy
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That's funny Pelargonium! :) Icadena, After looking at your pic again it looks like the "mix" is a few inches lower from the rim and the spaces down in there are VERY inviting to widows because they need nooks and crannies to hide in. Can't help wondering if raising the level of the "mix" closer to the rim(and thus making the "shelter" less secure),wouldn't make it less appealing to future tenants. Worth a shot,no? Edit: When/If you do this,First take a hair from your head and set one end into the web,then twirl it between your fingers to simulate prey. Once you know where she is,you'll be less likely to put your hand in her way,thus avoiding potential accidents. Good luck! :) This post was edited by asleep_in_the_garden on Fri, Aug 16, 13 at 19:21
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Black Widows can be lethal. When the kids unearthed a nest last summer priorities, organic and otherwise, became clear: RAID.
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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
15 years ago
I was wondering about the shape of her abdomen, too. I have seen plenty of BWs with red on the top as well as the underside, but all have really roundish bodies. Maybe I haven't paid attention to what they look like from that angle, other than the hourglass markings.

I can always go out to the garage and find bunch of them to examine. (NOT!)

Dorie
(recovering arachnophobe)

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Black Widow Spider

Comments (3)

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

MissSherry
Original Author

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Black Widow Spider

Comments (3)

rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

MissSherryOriginal Author

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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

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MissSherry
Original Author