Facts, Information, Scientific Name of Black Widow Spider
Let us explore the world but beware of the spider that nests in dark places.
Common Name – Black Widow Spider, True Widow, Brown Widow spider.
Scientific Name – Latrodectus.
Size – 3mm-10mm / 13mm / 38mm.
What are the corners of the Black Widow Spider?
This spider is mostly found in North America, the United States, Columbia and Canada. They appear in Firewood, Woodpiles, Dry places like boxes, rodent nests, basements, barns, shoes, patios, and desk crevices.
They form their webs in dark and undisturbed corners.
What do they look like?
The black widow spider is hourglass-shaped.
Females are Dark brown, black /pale brown with no markings. They have an orange hourglass shape on the abdomen.
Male spiders have red/white markings on the upper surface. It has a single stripe or a bar/spots.
The spider consumes Insects, flies, Mosquitoes, and grasshoppers. They rely on insects to get entangled in nests. The eye-sight of this spider is poor hence they rely upon the vibrations of the web when the prey gets caught up on the nests.
Black widow spiders spray digestive juices over the food, which gets liquified so the spider can consume it by sucking the prey into the body.
How do males approach Females?
Black widow spider female consumes male while mating.
Hence they are known as ‘Widow’ spiders.
Male spiders choose females by sensing chemicals in webs from Females. They get to know whether females have eaten already so that they can approach mating.
Defensive techniques of the spiders.
Black widow spiders play dead if trapped or disturbed. Then they land on the ground with a line of silk, to escape.
The venom is known as ‘Latrotoxin’. This results in ‘Latrodectism’.
‘Latrodectism’ results in muscle pain, Abdominal cramps, Tachycardia, Hyperhidrosis and muscle spasms in Humans.
Also See ⇒ Banana Spider Facts
