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For some, the mention of the name “Black Widow” might conjure up images of scheming female serial killers…for others, comic book or movie characters.  A select few might even think about the P-61 Black Widow – the first U.S. Military aircraft designed to use radar.  Of course, if you’re reading this, you know you are visiting and entomologist’s blog – so as you might expect, when you see Black Widow here, we’re talking about the spider!

While the term “black widow” has long been a part of our vocabulary and has been applied to a number of things (most of them decidedly unfavorable!) it does appear, according to the online etymology dictionary (http://www.etymologyonline.com/), to have originated with a “spider” – just not the spider we associate it with today.  Apparently, sometime around 1830, the name “black widow” appeared as a translation of a name of the “scorpion spider” of central Asia.  I could not find the source for this, and suspect that the “scorpion spider” is really an amblypygid – a distinct order of arachnid, neither spider nor scorpion. 

Black Widow spiders spin a disorderly, relatively strong web in protected areas where they live – in utility housings, cracks and crevices, in woodpiles and rock piles, inside old rodent burrows, and under objects.  The silk is so strong that it has a very characteristic feel – so if you turn an object over in your yard and feel something tough and stringy, back off and investigate further with anything other than your hands.  These spiders prefer to live near the ground, and the female spider is reluctant to leave her web.  Contrary to popular belief, the female spider does not always kill and eat the male after mating.  She does eat roaches, beetles, and other creatures that become entangled in her web.

Photo by Patrick Edwin Moran

Bites are relatively rare, and the severity of the bite is dependent upon several things – the location and duration of the bite (amount of venom injected), the victim’s age and health, and their overall sensitivity to the venom.  Bites may go unnoticed at first, but in some cases can rapidly progress to intense pain, cramping of the abdominal muscles, nausea, perspiration, labored breathing, and a host of other unpleasant symptoms.  Death is very rare.

If bitten, seek medical help immediately.  If at all possible, the spider should be collected for identification.  While spiders are generally difficult to control, Black Widow populations can be reduced with some persistence and judicious pesticide use.  The homeowner can do his or her part by reducing harborage around the home (areas that provide shelter for spiders).  Any undisturbed, cluttered area outdoors and near the ground may be attractive to Black Widow spiders – so any steps the homeowner can take to remove these conditions will contribute greatly to a long-term plan designed to reduce the risk of unwanted encountered with these potentially dangerous spiders.