Poisonous Spiders

In many people’s minds, the spider in the corner is out to get you with its large fangs, gangly legs, sticky web, and creepy-crawly feel. As a matter of fact, spiders do bite and many spiders do have venom in their bodies – but most do not even leave a mark. It’s those few spiders that have a killer bite with excess venom to boot that you have to look out for. Here are a few of the more common and known poisonous spiders.

The Black Widow

The most notorious spider of all, the Black Widow is a spider that is well-known for its black coloring and splotch of red on the backside near the butt. However, this popular rendition of the spider is known only to adult females – males and maturing females often are brown, smaller, and don’t have the distinctive marks yet.

The Black Widow has the most venomous bite of all. It can cause a human to be sick for days or weeks, and can cause death in some instances. For pets, it is almost always fatal. So make sure to look out for black spiders with huge red dots. They often reside in dark and dry places such as basements and garages. Strangely, there are people who are actually keeping these spiders as pets. And for those folks here is a link to some creative and cool spider names.

The Brown Recluse

The Brown Recluse is another notorious spider with a wicked bite. They, like Black Widows, live in dark and dry places. They have been reported in diverse places from attics to basements, air ducts to shoes. However, they only have a limited range – mainly the Midwestern United States. Other reports of them being in California were isolated incidents or mistaken identity.

The spider’s bite can cause sickness, tremors, and the occasional death. These spiders aren’t as recognizable because of their brown coloring. However, they are larger spiders – they can span over an entire penny and more.

The Sydney Funnel-Web Spider

Native to Australia, the Sydney funnel-web spider requires hospitalization after a spider bite. These spiders are present in mainly moist areas, such as logs, trees, and rocks. They are brown and black and can be very aggressive. The males carry more venom and wander more than the females.

Children are at most risk from these spider bites. An anti-venom has been developed that is present in hospitals around Australia. These spiders can bite many times and cause more extensive damage if not shaken off quickly.