Black Widow

A mature female black widow spider has a large, block, shiny body and measures approximately 3/8 inch long, with one-inch legs. An hour-glass shape in bright red or orange-red color can be found on the abdomen.

Block widow spider webs are very irregular, white in color and strong. They're most often found in areas where water and insects are readily available. Around the home, they can be found under outdoor furniture, barbecue grills, pool pumps, and in storage areas, garages, wood piles, blocks fences and the corners of porches and patios. The black widow is shy. She hides near the web by day and is most active at night, where she waits in her web for prey to enter. She produces hundreds of babies hatched from egg sacs that look like little mothballs. The young black widows are white in color and spread quickly after hatching.

The male black widow is much smaller, and is brown and white in color. Because of its size, its bite cannot pierce skin, and is therefore not dangerous to humans.

Control

A "live and let live" attitude is the best approach for living in harmony with nature. But if you have a problem of close contact with the black widow or you have young children who play outside, you may have to take steps to control the black widow population around your house.

To control the black widow population, it is necessary to directly hit the adult spider with a strong insecticide and destroy the egg sacs. To locate the black widow spider, use a flashlight at night to find her in her web.

Signs and Symptoms of a Bite

The initial bite may feel like a pin prick, which may go unnoticed. At first victims experience little or no visible signs of the bite such as swelling. A red circular mark may appear about six hours after the bite. The initial symptoms may be progressive aching sensations, with muscle pain at the bite site spreading to the lower back, thighs and limbs. Symptoms often last up to 36 hours and lingering effects may last for several weeks.

Treatment

Call the Samaritan Regional Poison Center 602-253-3334 or 1-800-222-1222 for the signs and symptoms and first aid treatment and to determine whether the bite victim can be managed at home
or will require treatment by a physician or hospitalization. Severe cases may require antivenin treatment

Approximately 350 calls are received each year about bites from the black widow spider.

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