Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Black Widow Spider


True Wild :ife | Black Widow Spider | There are three main species of black widow spider, all of which have very similar characteristics and inhabit areas in Northern America and parts of Mexico. Until very recently all three species of black widow spider were classified as one but recent research shows that as the species inhabit different areas, the three species of black widow spider have adapted to their environment in different ways.


The Northern black widow spider is primarily found in the north east of the USA and parts of south east Canada, although the range of the northern black widow spider overlaps with that of the western black widow spider a great deal. The Western black widow spider inhabits areas of the western USA, Canada and parts of Mexico, although these western black widow spiders are often confused for the False black widow spider in Canada.


The Southern black widow spider is found throughout the states in south east America from Florida right up to New York, and are also found more west towards Texas and Arizona where the black widow spider is said to run rampant.


The black widow spider typically preys on a variety of insects, but occasionally they do feed upon woodlice and other arachnids. The black widow spider waits until prey has been trapped in its web before they quickly run out of their den, wrap it up and bite it. The venom from the bite of the black widow spider takes about ten minutes to take effect so the prey is held tightly by the spider. When the prey of the black widow spider has stopped moving, digestive enzymes are released into the wound where the black widow spider originally bit it. The black widow spider then carries its prey back to its retreat before feeding.


The black widow spider, although small, has extremely dangerous venom that is said to be more potent than the venom of a cobra. It is rare for a healthy human adult to be injected with a fatal dose of the venom from a black widow spider, and generally bites will result in a large swelling around the bite and will cause the human to experience nausea, muscle aches and breathing difficulties. The greatest amount of human deaths by spider have been caused by the black widow spider, mainly due to the enormous geographical range that is inhabited by the black widow. These instances have dramatically increased with the development of antivenin and more effective plumbing in households.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Do you mean "decreased" in the last sentence?

PHYLLIS PER said...

THANK YOU FOR SHOWING MY GRANDSON WHO IS 4 AL THESE SPIDERS. HE ENJOYED THE SPIDER PICTURES.HIS NAME IS LORENZO.

Anonymous said...

OMG I SAW THIS IN MY FRIENDS CAR AND WE KILLED IT. DX What does a bite or how do you kow if it bied you?

Anonymous said...

I was at my mom's house in Strongs, Michigan today and caught a large one with an egg sack and one of his friends. I couldn't get the others because they ducked into her eaves. How do you get rid of these? Should we call an exterminator?! Small children around frequently. PLEASE RESPOND!! Thank you!

Labels

Albatross Alligator Amphibian Angelfish Ant Anteater Antelope Ape Armadillo Aves Avocet Axolotl Baboon Badger Bandicoot Barb Barracuda Bat Bear Beaver Bee Beetle Binturong Bird Birds Of Paradise Bison Boar Bongo Bonobo Booby Budgerigar Buffalo Butterfly Butterfly Fish Caiman Camel Capybara Caracal Carnivore Cassowary Cat Caterpillar Catfish Cattle Centipede Chameleon Chamois Cheetah Chicken Chimpanzee Chinchilla Cichlid Civet Clouded Leopard Clown Fish Coati Cockroach Collared Peccary Common Buzzard Coral Cougar Cow Coyote Crab Crane Critically Endangered Crocodile Crustacean Cuscus Damselfly Deer Dhole Discus Dodo Dog Dolphin Donkey Dormouse Dragon Dragonfly Duck Dugong Eagle Echidna Eel Elephant Emu Endangered Extinct Falcon Ferret Fish Flamingo Flatfish Flounder Fly Fossa Fox Frog Gar Gazelle Gecko Gerbil Gharial Gibbon Giraffe Goat Goose Gopher Gorilla Grasshopper Grouse Guinea Fowl Guinea Pig Guppy Hamster Hare Hedgehog Herbivore Heron Hippopotamus Horse Human Hummingbird Hyena Ibis Iguana Impala Insect Invertebrate Jackal Jaguar Jellyfish Kangaroo Kingfisher Kiwi Koala Kudu Ladybird Ladybug Larvae Least Concern Lemming Lemur Leopard Lion Lionfish Lizard Llama Lobster Lynx Macaque Mammal Mammoth Manatee Mandrill Manta Ray Marsupial Mayfly Meerkat Millipede Mole Mollusca Molly Mongoose Monkey Moorhen Moose Moth Mouse Mule Near Threatened Newt Nightingale Numbat Octopus Okapi Olm Omnivore Opossum Orang Utan Oriole Ostrich Otter Owl Oyster Pademelon Panda Panther Parrot Peacock Pelican Penguin Phanter Pheasant Pig Pika Pike Piranha Platypus Pond Skater Possum Prawn Primate Puffer Fish Puffin Puma Quail Quoll Rabbit Raccoon Raccoon Dog Rare Rat Reindeer Reptile Rhinoceros Robin Rodent Salamander Scorpion Scorpion Fish Sea Dragon Sea Lion Sea Slug Sea Squirt Sea Urchin Seahorse Seal Serval Shark Sheep Shrew Shrimp Skunk Sloth Snail Snake Spider Sponge Squid Squirrel Starfish Stoat Swan Tamarin Tapir Tarantula Threatened Tiger Toad Tortoise Toucan Turkey Turtle Vulnerable Vulture Walrus Weasel Whale Wildebeest Wolf Woodlouse Woodpecker Worm Zebra