1. It’s brown recluse
spider season. That’s the spider with the violin markings on its back –
sometimes called the fiddle back spider, brown fiddler, or violin spider. Brown
recluse spiders are rather shy and non aggressive, but they have a powerful
poison. Occasional bites happens because people and brown recluses often share
the same living space. These spiders like dark corners and places inside the
house, and also live under the furniture, boxes and books. From a research team at Kansas State University’s Department of
Entomology, here are 10 things to know about these venomous spiders
that like to live where we do
1. Brown recluse spiders are
found outdoors in the U.S. Midwest, as well as inside structures. They tend to
thrive in the same environments that humans do.
2. Brown recluse spiders
are venomous, but bites do not
always result in large, necrotic lesions where surrounding tissue dies. Often,
the bite goes unnoticed and only results in a pimple-like swelling. However,
some people develop a necrotic wound (with blood and pus) which is slow to
heal, with the potential for a secondary infection. If you know you've been
bitten, catch the spider if safely possible, and show it to medical personnel
for clear identification.
3. They readily feed on
prey that is dead, so are attracted to recently killed insects. However, they
can and will also attack live prey.
4. Brown recluses build
small, irregular webs in out-of-the-way places but do not use these to capture
prey. They tend to hide in the dark and move around at night searching for
prey.
2. 5. A brown recluse is
tiny when it first emerges from the egg case and takes several molts to reach
adulthood, 6-12 months. Remember, they are only active from March to October so
this may take one to two years. Then they may live 2-3 years as adults. Females
can produce 2-5 egg cases during this time (two or three is most common) and
each may contain 20-50 spider lings.
5. Sticky traps for spiders
and other insects, available at most hardware and garden stores, work well to
trap brown recluse spiders. They may not significantly reduce the numbers, but
definitely help, and are a great way to detect and monitor the spider
populations.
6. Brown recluse spiders
are mostly only active from March through October, so trying to control them
from October through March is generally not necessary or useful.
7. Insecticides labeled to
control brown recluse spiders kill the spiders, but must be sprayed directly on
them, or the spider needs to come into direct contact with the treated area
while it is still damp. Otherwise, little control is achieved.
8. Brown recluse spiders
are better controlled with insecticides on non-carpeted surfaces.
9. Preventative measures
like sealing cracks in foundations and walls, clearing clutter in and around
the home, moving woodpiles away from the house, placing sticky traps in low
traffic areas and spraying pesticides can help eliminate brown recluse
populations within the home.
Brown recluse spider