Amazing Facts About The Black Widow Spiders

March 24, 2019


In North Carolina, spiders are prevalent. They are not so harmful if we leave them alone, but if we accidentally get in touch with them, they are harmful creatures. As the spiders expert in North Carolina pinpoints, spider infestation must be avoided. Here are some facts that we must know about spiders.

We have gathered some interesting facts about this amazing creature. Read on:

1. Black Widow spiders are venomous. Their venoms are 15 times more potent than a rattlesnake’s. But since they are small, they are built only to subdue smaller insects and not humans or larger animals.  

2. Dying due to the Black Widow’s bite is just a myth. Their venoms can cause muscle aches, nausea, and breathing difficulties; but most people who are bitten do not suffer any major illnesses. However, it could be fatal to small children or the elderly.

3. Black Widow spiders perform very violent mating rituals. The female black widows eat their male partners after mating, thus the name. Studies made in the University of Hamburg in Germany found out that the male black widows make this ultimate sacrifice to provide nutrition for their eggs.  

4. The average lifespan for black widows is 1 to 3 years, maybe even shorter for the males.

5. If you see a spider having a red hourglass-shaped mark on its abdomen, it is a black widow spider, but not all black widows have this marking. This red marking serves as a warning to other predators to stay away.

6. Female black widow spiders are three times more venomous than the males. It is the bite of the female black widow that causes more harm to humans. Females are also nearly double than that of the male’s.

7. Black widow spiders only keep to themselves and bite only in self - defense. You will have to touch them or pinch them to make them bite. Of course, you would not want to do that.  

8. Black widows liquefy their prey before feeding on them. They eat insects like flies, mosquitoes, beetles, bugs, grasshoppers, and caterpillars. Whenever any of these insects get caught in the web the black widows constructed, the black widow wraps it in silk, punctures the insect with its fangs to inject enzymes to liquefy their prey. They then suck the fluid for their meal.

9. Black widow spiders are the most venomous spiders in all of North America.

10. Not all widow spiders are black. They all belong to the genus Latrodectus and there are 31 species under that genus. In the United States, we also have a red widow and the brown widow spider.

11. Female black widows have poor eyesight. She uses her silk web and its vibrations to tell her that food is ready to be served, caught in her web. 

12. Male black widows use that to their advantage when during mating.  The males cut the webs and rearrange it so that they can easily approach the female without her seeing him.

To get rid of these spiders, get the help of spider exterminator in North Carolina.  Call Go-Forth Pest Control and schedule an appointment to prevent further spider infestation.




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