is this a friend or foe?

The one in my garden had her web in a pot that contained verbenas. The pot next to it had osteospermum. There were LOTS of flying insects for her to dine on.

I loved watching her & nicknamed her "Argi" from Argiope aurantia.

Nancy

Hey guys,

So... why are brown recluse spiders bad? Poisonous? How bad, cause I think I just saw like 9 in my garden yesterday. The little brown ones that run around in the dirt? Eeek?

~Kristy

Probably not brown recluse. I would bet wolf spiders. Brown recluses are usually found in houses, and they don't go running around on the ground. They come out of the woodwork - mostly at night and wander around, usually staying close to the baseboard. Sometimes they get into pants that are left lying on the floor, or clothes hampers, etc. And sometimes in sofa cushions, etc. I have lots and lots of experience with them from when I lived in Edmond, Oklahoma. Lived their nine years, never bit.

Here's a brown recluse. Note the "fiddle" or "violin" on it's upper body.

This message was edited Aug 23, 2006 11:54 PM

And here's a wolf spider - the common garden spider. The female carries her babies on her back after they hatch - for a short while. Good guys!

The wolf spiders in this part of California are anything but little. They make tarantulas look tiny.

I'd always been taught that the brown recluse is one of the most dangerous spiders when it bites but some of the websites related to it seem to think otherwise.

The link below has photos of the effect of a brown recluse spider bite. Please be forwarned that these pictures can be unsettling if you are not used to seeing open wounds:
http://www.spiderzrule.com/reclusebiteleg.htm

As I said, my coworker got bit by a brown recluse. She was feverish, sweating, throwing up, and she had to go to the hospital for several days to have the pus drained out of her wound.

Brown recluse are very bad. Their poison destroys the flesh, necrotizes it.

Yes, I would never want to be bit by one. It is not always as bad as the above, but it can be....I have known people who have had to have the area excised in order to stop the advance of the necrotizing venom, leaving a big crater in the area. Others have immediately seen a doctor (who knew what they were doing) and with steroid and antibiotics were able to stop the damage. (My DH was one) I imagine that part of that success depends on how big the spider was.

Thanks for the pix and info, ceejaytown. After I posted, I was thinking that brown recluses probably don't run on the ground. My friend found one in a tree, once, but I didn't go take a good look at it. (I'm arachnaphobic.) Okay, truth be told... he had it in a glass jar, so I grabbed the jar (without looking at it) and shook it back and forth until it was dead. He was upset, but it had to die. Especially because HE had it. He was the type that would've put it into someone's shoe as a joke. Now that I hear how bad the poison is, I'm REALLY glad I killed it!

Okay, after that little confession. Ceejay, in the pic of the brown recluse you posted, it looks almost white. Those aren't the almost see-thru white spiders you find in houses, are they? I don't think those have a fiddle mark, but I never really stared at one to see!

~Kristy... not knowing how much longer she can continue on this thread, cause she's itching like crazy just thinking of spiders!

Kristy, I know how you feel. I am trying to get into the first phase of conquering arachnophobia, looking at pictures and reading about them.

I still hate them! And every time I look at pictures my head itches. I have long hair, and I have this irrational fear of bugs crawling in it.

I never get close enough to a spider to ask its pedigree. Either I run, or I hurl a shoe. Spraying poison on them just makes them angry, I think.

I'm glad you killed the spider! I don't think I would have had the courage to grab a glass jar with a spider in it.

i found my spider! i did not see it for a few days...thought it either got killed or left but it has popped up further down my flower bed about 20 ft. or so inbetween some sunflowers and an angel trumpet.

i can relate to everyone talking about their fear of spiders. they really freak me out too. normally i am a spray first and ask questions later type of gal but for some reason i just don't want to kill this one. maybe it is because my husband has named it charlotte and goes to look at it daily.

i plan on keeping an eye on her to see if she becomes a mommy and i will post pics if i see anything interesting.

I'm happy to know that there are other people who are fascinated by the writing spiders and their webs.We have lots of them here at the beach and I try not to disturb them in the garden.Some people think I am nuts.We also have lots of mosquitoes and anything that helps get rid of them and isn't toxic is a friend of mine.

I'll try to get a picture today.
Nancy

I like spiders, but no garden spiders for me this year. I think the drought we've had this year has not been kind to the critters.

As for brown recluse - that picture of ceejaytown's is a good one, and the fiddle can be helpful, but one of the best ways to tell if you have a brown recluse is to look at its eyes (You can put it in the refrigerator for a while to knock it out, and then use a magnifying glass). If the spider has 6 eyes that are in 3 pairs - one pair in front, and one pair on each side of the face - it could be a brown recluse. The only other major kind it could be is a spitting spider, but these will not have a fiddle and are often "striped" on the legs.

Here's what the eyes look like:

Excellent point, Night.

No, it's not a see through spider. The abdomen and top half (cephalothorax - head and thorax are combined into one part) are two different shades of tan. Usually the abdomen is darker - not always. The celphalothorax is rounded, the abdomen is more oblong. Once you are familiar with them, they are easy to recognize at 15 feet! (or more, depending on the light, lol) Their legs are unusually long and they are more delicate, unlike a wolf spider (good guy) who has heavy legs. Stripes down the back rule out brown recluse also.

I used to be afraid of spiders until I learned more about them. And until I found out that they were actually good guys - eating insects and not plants. They are really very interesting, and I still have a lot to learn!

Here's another brown recluse, fiddle back, violin spider....

Hi guys,

Thanks for helping me figure out which spider is which. But I'm with WhiteHydrangea on this one... just thinking about them makes my hair itch and I think they're in my hair or I feel my hair touch me and think one is on my back and.... ahhh, okay, I have to take a shower and wash my hair now. And I just did that a few hours ago! Okay, not really, but I used to have to take a shower and wash my hair when my arachnaphobia got bad, just to MAKE SURE none were on me. Good pic, ceejay. Sorry, Nightbloom, I couldn't bring myself to click on your thumbnail. The eyes are really creepy! Ewwwww.... ::shivers:: Okay, I have to go and scratch like a dog now, LOL!

~Kristy (thanks for the info, it's fascinating, really, but I can't look at any more!) LOL!

That's how I feel when I go into someone's house and their dog is sitting there scratching! I just have to join him - until I can get to a shower! LOL