Black Widows are a species of deadly spider widely distributed around the world.

The black widow spider got its name thanks to a special ritual - the female eats the male after mating. However, this does not always happen, often in cases where the female takes her boyfriend for prey. But how dangerous is this creature for humans and how can it be recognized among other spiders?

Characteristic

Black widows are a genus of spiders, numbering 31 species, and they inhabit all continents without exception. Among them there are special representatives whose bite is very dangerous for humans.
The description of the black widow spider will largely depend on its species, but at the same time they all have characteristic features of a kind.

• Dimensions - the body length of adult male spiders is about 1.2-2 cm, the length of the legs is approximately similar to the size of the body. Males are approximately half the size of females.
• Legs - The black widow has 8 legs. A characteristic feature is the crest-paws. On the back pair of legs there are strong curved bristles that help the spider to close the web over the prey.
• Color - the body of an adult spider is a black widow, as can be seen in the photo, painted black with one red or orange spot, which in shape resembles an hourglass, or with several red spots. In females under puberty, red spots have a white border. In European species, the stain is colored in white-brown. The body of young spiders is white or yellowish-white; after the next molt, it acquires a darker shade.
• Vision - the eyes of a black widow are arranged in two rows, each of which has 4 eyes. The middle pair is the main one, the lateral ones can distinguish only light and movement.

On a note! Despite the large number of eyes in general, the black widow spider sees very poorly. He recognizes the presence of the victim solely by the vibration that he creates when he is in the web!

Development

A fertilized female lays eggs in a cocoon of cobwebs, which she fastens near her hunting net. The cocoon itself is a grayish sphere with a funnel-shaped exit. The masonry is under constant control of the mother until spiders appear from the eggs.

Development in an egg takes 2 to 4 weeks. Young offspring who have just come from eggs immediately enter the struggle for life. Stronger individuals eat the weak, thus, not all survive. As a result, only a small handful of young black widows leave the cocoon, often up to 12 spiders.

As mentioned above, immediately after birth, the body of young individuals is painted white. And only after a few links they darken enough and will look like adult spiders from the genus of black widows.

Spread

And where does the black widow spider live? Each species is attached to its territory. For example, in the territory of Eurasia, 8 species of black widows were found, in South and North America - 13, in Oceania and on the Australian mainland - 3.
In Russia, there is also a certain species of black widow spider, which is known as white karakurt. It can be recognized by the characteristic spherical abdomen, painted white or yellow. At the same time, this black widow has no bright spot.Instead of a pattern, a white karakurt on the surface of the abdomen has four indentations that form a rectangle.

Important! Despite the fact that the poison of white karakurt is much less toxic than that of other black widows, it can be deadly for old people and children!

However, recently, due to significant warming, many species of these arachnids have changed their habitats. Increasingly, it is heard about the appearance of a black widow spider in the Crimea, the Caucasus, Taganrog, the Southern Urals and the Rostov regions.

These spiders prefer to hang their cobwebs in dark, dry shelters and settle mainly in poorly lit places. Therefore, a meeting with them can occur in sheds, garages, toilets located on the street, as well as in abandoned animal holes, hollow stumps and even in dense thickets of grass.

On a note! With the advent of colds, the black widow spider always moves to a warm room, and therefore in winter they can be found even in a residential building!

Consequences of a bite

Females of black widows are always more aggressive than males, but if you accidentally disturb the latter, even he is able to attack and bite a person. At the same time, the risk of attack from the side of the spider increases at times in the fall, when it moves to residential premises.

The black widow spider bite is moderately painful - it feels like a prick pin. Typical symptoms are:

• expansion of capillaries, which leads to slight redness of the skin;
• edema develops almost immediately;
• after half an hour - an hour in the affected area appear muscle cramps, which are accompanied by intense pain;
• then the muscles of the anterior abdominal wall tighten, the pain continues to grow and becomes painful.

On a note! This symptom is often taken as a sign of peritonitis, but palpation of the abdomen is painless!

Perhaps the development of some additional symptoms, among them:

• increase in blood pressure;
• intense salivation;
• rapid sweating;
• vomiting
• an attack of severe shortness of breath;
• heart rhythm disturbance with an increase in heart rate;
• anxiety;
• general weakness;
• headache;
• urinary incontinence;
• muscle twitching;
• skin sensitivity disorder: from tingling and “goosebumps” to complete numbness.

An allergic reaction to poison is also possible. After a bite, it is advisable to administer an antidote as soon as possible. After three hours, there is a great risk of aggravating the already serious condition of the victim, up to the death.

On a note! In the best case, procrastination is fraught with an irreversible trauma to the nervous system and worsening of the mental state without the possibility of its recovery or even minimal improvement!

In order to avoid trouble, watch the spiders when you spend time outdoors or in a country house, and under no circumstances should you pick them up.