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Spider Photos -
Brown Recluse Spiders |
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Here's some photos sent in by viewers.
The brown
recluse belongs to a group of spiders that is officially
known as the "recluse spiders" in the genus
Loxosceles (pronounced lox-sos-a-leez). These
spiders are also commonly referred to as "fiddleback"
spiders or "violin" spiders because of the violin-shaped
marking on the top surface of the cephalothorax (fused
head and thorax). However, this feature can be very
faint depending on the species of recluse spider,
particularly those in the southwestern U.S., or how
recently the spider has molted. The common name, brown
recluse spider, pertains to only one species,
Loxosceles reclusa. The name refers to its color and
habits. It is a reclusive creature that seeks and
prefers seclusion. The brown recluse spider and ten
additional species of Loxosceles are native to
the United States. In addition, a few non-native species
have become established in limited areas of the country.
The brown recluse spider is found mainly in the central
Midwestern states southward to the Gulf of Mexico.
Click here for a map of the
different species of Recluse and their distribution on
the United States. Isolated cases in Ohio are likely attributable
to this spider occasionally being transported in
materials from other states. Although uncommon, there
are more confirmed reports of Loxosceles rufescens
(Mediterranean recluse) than the brown recluse in Ohio.
It, too, is a human-associated species with similar
habits and probably similar venom risks (unverified).
(Ohio State University Fact Sheet) A great reference
page on Brown and Desert Recluse and their
identification is
here.
Click
here for an article by George
Fiedler on one of the most common infections that is
often mistaken for a recluse bite.
All photos are copyright to their
owners and may not be reproduced without permission.
Please choose a
section.
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In the mature brown recluse spider as well as some other species of recluse
spiders, the dark violin marking is well defined, with the neck of the violin
pointing toward the bulbous abdomen. The abdomen is uniformly coloured, although
the coloration can range from light tan to dark brown, and is covered with
numerous fine hairs that
 provide a velvety appearance. The long, thin, brown
legs also are covered with fine hairs, but not spines. Adult brown recluse
spiders have a leg span about the size of a quarter. Their body is about 3/8
inches long and about 3/16 inches wide. Males are slightly smaller in body
length than females, but males have proportionally longer legs. Both sexes are
venomous. The immature stages closely resemble the adults except for size and a
slightly lighter color. Whereas most spiders have eight eyes, recluse spiders
have six eyes that are arranged in pairs in a semicircle on the forepart of the
cephalothorax .
The brown recluse spider spins a loose, irregular web of very sticky,
off-white to grayish threads. This web serves as the spider's daytime retreat,
and it often is constructed in an undisturbed corner. This spider roams at night
searching for insect prey. Recent research indicates that the brown
recluse spider is largely a scavenger, preferring dead insects. Mature males
also roam in search of females. Brown recluse spiders generally occupy dark,
undisturbed sites, and they can occur indoors or outdoors. In favourable
habitats, their populations are usually dense. They thrive in human-altered
environments. Indoors, they may be found in attics, basements, crawl spaces,
cellars, closets, and ductwork or registers. They may seek shelter in storage
boxes, shoes, clothing, folded linens, and behind furniture. They also may be
found in outbuildings such as barns, storage sheds, and garages. Outdoors, brown
recluse spiders may be found underneath logs, loose stones in rock piles, and
stacks of lumber. The brown recluse spider is not aggressive, and it normally
bites only when crushed, handled or disturbed. Some people have been bitten in
bed after inadvertently rolling over onto the spider. Others have been bitten
after accidentally touching the spider when cleaning storage areas. Some bites
occur when people put on seldom used clothing or shoes inhabited by a brown
recluse. (Ohio State University Fact Sheet) |
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Reply: It has the t
violin pattern on the cephalothorax and the body colour is right so
it could be one - glen.
28 June, 2010:
hello,
i'm wondering if i have brown recluse living in my bathroom somewhere. we've spotted many over the last several months, the most recent one was a couple mornings ago waiting for me in the bathtub, so i took a few pictures. can you take a look at tell me what you think?
thanks,
Rich |
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Reply: It certainly has the right
violin pattern on the cephalothorax and the body colour is right.
1 August, 2009:
Just wondering if this is a recluse…..seems awfully large for one though.
Darin |
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26 July, 2009:
Hello. I’m in Chicago, on the second floor of a condo building. Last August I found a reclusa rufensce (sp?) swimming in my bathtub. I am glad I drew the bath before getting in. WHOA. It was correctly identified by some spider guys at the Natural History Museum in Chicago and another professor in Illinois studying recluses. The first pic
is of my Recluse specimen.
Thanks!!!
Meg |
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3 June, 2009:
Can you identify this spider?
Is it a brown recluse?
Thanks for any help you can provide!
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2 November, 2008:
Hi Glen,
I enjoy viewing your web site. I’ve always liked spiders but I respect them, and value the role they play.
I live in Bermuda, when I was younger there was only a small selection of spiders commonly found on the island, but as imports have increased so has the selection of spiders. I am now finding spiders that I’ve never seen before.
I was hoping that you could help me to positively identify a few I’ve found recently. In photo # 5049, 5051 (same spider) and 6788, I believe both these spiders to be the brown recluse spider, am I correct?
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27 July,
2008:
Hi Glen,
I live in Knoxville Tennessee and my roommate was recently bit by a spider that was inside a pair of pants hanging in the closet. It turned into a fairly large and nasty bite that she eventually sought medical attention for. Since then I have been paying close attention to spiders around the house. I just caught this one tonight and snapped some pictures. I’m fairly certain it is a Brown Recluse but I was hoping you could verify that for me. Feel free to use these pictures in any way you need. Thanks, Dan
Click for a larger view. |
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8 June,
2008:
Hi Glen! You have an awesome site. I've been lost for days now looking at all the amazing spider photos available. I wanted to send you this up-close photo of a Brown Recluse spider I took last month in Oklahoma. You can see the hair on it's legs!
Keep up the great work,
Neil
Click for a larger view. |
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Another Reply from Charla: The 3 from jan. 12: these are sac spiders. they do not look like the ones on your page, but they are very common at my college (especially, as you said, in the fall). all the ones i find have the same traits - enormous mandibles, a dark brown face that fades into light brown close to the head, a dark abdomen, and back legs that are slightly shorter than the front legs.
Reply: They
could be brown recluse, they have the violin shape on their cephalothorax.
12 January,
2008:
I found these two spiders washed up after a rain in my backyard...I
think it's a brown recluse spider, could they a male and female??
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Reply: It
could be a brown recluse, it has the violin shape on its cephalothorax.
12 January,
2008:
Can you please tell me if you think this is a brown
recluse and if not, what it is? We live in Texas and just turned our house
upside down (boxes, furniture, etc...) having new carpet installed after 30
years. I have seen several of these guys lately since then and it is really
concerning to me. I have a two year old daughter and I am scared to death
she will be bitten. Is this a brown recluse? If not, what it is? Dangerous
or not? The actual spider is quite small, about the size of a nickel with
leg span and all. I certainly appreciate any help you can give me. Sincerely, Carlotta
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Click for a larger view. |
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2 November,
2007:
Dear Glen, My son and I have enjoyed looking at the pictures you
have. Today I had an unwanted visitor land on my shoulder, fortunately no
bites. I managed to brush him off and snap a few pictures of him, I thought I
would share them with you. Thanks for the wonderful website. Sincerely,
Jennifer, Stockton, KS |
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Click for a larger view |
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A Reply from Charla: This is a southern house spider (filistata hibernalis). the stripe on the back is typical, but the photo also shows the golden brown around the legs, very long pedipalps, and two eyes that look more like a tarantula's eyes than anything else.
i googled southern house spider to send a better picture and found one on your website. it's under great spider photos 2006 (august 26).
26 February,
2007:
But Hey I caught one, And I am looking
at a fiddleback here. Its just that the abdomin is tiny not like in
the pictures I see, the thorax is correct with the base of the
fiddle starting at the head and the neck facing towards the back
end. But I figured it would be larger here. I am taking pictures,
Still havent got one that is very clear to show u, its hard with
this 4.0 mp camera. So here are some attached photos. You give me
your wisdom. Its off to the Managers office with this guy in the
morning, if its truly a fiddleback. Thanks so much for your help.
Kristi in Nashville TN |
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Click for a larger view |
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Reply: It looks like a recluse to me.
21 September,
2006:
I found this spider in my basement and thought that
it might be a brown recluse. What do you think? Use the pic if you like.
Eric Tiemann - St. Louis Missouri
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Reply: Certainly looks like a recluse to me.
17 June, 2006:
Hi, great site! I find these in my home all the time. They
look like brown recluse, but many have said that the recluse is often mistaken.
Can you confirm what this is? Thanks!
BTW, I live in Memphis, TN. And, feel free to share the pic.
- Ben
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17 February, 2006:
Our house is loaded with them. I'm going to get an
exterminator out here and if they can't get 'em all but stopped then I'll
consider strongly......moving from the house. We have a baby crawling around
and that's just a bit too scary. We see them all too often.
Hope you like the photos. If you need more I can get 'em
anytime and can get some better ones if you like.
blessings, Ken
Click for a larger view. |
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8 November, 2005:
This is a 6 x 8 inch monitor trap full of Brown Recluse
Spiders. There were 14 more of these traps that we removed from a home in
Jackson Tennessee. Thanks for a great site!
Ray Phillips
Associate Certified Entomologist
Corporate Residential Pest Control Manager
Cook's Pest Control, Inc.
Office (256) 340-2507 Ext. 166
Cell (256) 227-5998
Fax (256) 340-2531
rayp@cookspest.com |
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23
October, 2005:
I have a few more good pictures of a brown recluse in you
want/need any. We have been over run with them in our shed and garage.
Thankfully we have only found one in the house. We are in southern TN.
Kimberly~ |
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18 July, 2005:
hey nice site ,thought you might like to putt these pics of a
brown recluse i found onyour site, my gf had stepped on it in the shower and
didnt sqaush it but it was drenched so we thought it was dead we took pics of it
and then we put it in a jar the next day it was alive and running around crazy i
tell ya! any way enjoy the pics!
-russ
Click for a larger view. |
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Could John please
email me, as someone wants to use his
photos for another web page?
Thanks, glen
21 June, 2005:
This is a recluse from northwest Alabama. They emerge at
night, and hunt along the floor. Feel free to use the photo if you can.
John S. Williams
Great photo, click for a larger view!! |
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28
December, 2004:
Dear Sir or Madam, I was wondering if your could help me. My family and I
live in Bahrain and I have come across this spider many times. I have a feeling
it is a brown recluse spider as it behaves very much like one. I find them
constantly in the laundry hamper. Can you help me identify this spider as we
have a small child in the house and I am very scared of her being bitten by one.
I would appreciate any assistance you could give. Kind regards, Mrs. Reboni |
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14 October, 2004:
Brown Recluse from Rogers, Arkansas
I found this one in one of my kids toys. In fact the same toy car that I found
the Black Widow in which you posted a few months ago. Goes to show that if you
keep toys outside it might be good to shake it a bit before letting the kids
play.
Craig Richardson
Rogers Arkansas |
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29 July, 2004:
Here’s a cool photo I took of a mature male brown recluse
last month while visiting my parents in St. Louis, Missouri. I
discovered they had a brown recluse infestation. No bites yet (and
we hope it stays that way) and so far 25 have been caught. The
biggest had a body about 0.75 inches long and leg span of over 2
inches. This guy’s body was about 0.50” long. Feel free to post the
photo to help folks identify a brown recluse.
Tom Sovar |
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30 September, 2003:
Brown Recluse found in Fayetteville Arkansas. It was missing
a couple legs but still very active and fast. Must of lost a fight
with a praying mantis or another spider. Feel free to use this
picture. |
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