Omg

Crazy motherly instinct kicking in. Are they poisinous or something??? I'm not afraid of spiders so i"m not sure which ones I shouldn't pick up-

I just googled

*hides {after checking for spiders}*

like other spiders, the brown recluse is not aggressive. It is quite common, in fact, to live in a building that is heavily infested and never be bitten. Most bites occur in response to body pressure, when a spider is inadvertently trapped against bare skin. some people are bitten when they roll over one in bed. other bites occur while moving stored items or putting on a piece of clothing that a spider has chosen for its daytime retreat. Brown recluse spiders have remarkably small fangs and cannot bite through clothing.

The initial bite is usually painless. Oftentimes the victim is unaware until 3 to 8 hours later when the bite site may become red, swollen, and tender. The majority of brown recluse spider bites remain localized, healing within 3 weeks without serious complication or medical intervention. In other cases, the victim may develop a necrotic lesion, appearing as a dry, sinking bluish patch with irregular edges, a pale center and peripheral redness. Often there is a central blister. As the venom continues to destroy tissue, the wound may expand up to several inches over a period of days or weeks. The necrotic ulcer can persist for several months, leaving a deep scar. Infrequently, bites in the early stages produce systemic reactions accompanied by fever, chills, dizziness, rash or vomiting. Severe reactions to the venom are more common in children, the elderly, and patients in poor health. Persons bitten by a brown recluse spider should apply ice, elevate the affected area, and seek medical attention immediately.


a friend of mine was just bit by one a few months ago and she can't hardly walk now because of one. It's horrible.

Wow freaking scary... Thank god for the mom instincts!

I got bit on my butt like 5 years ago and man it hurt so bad. It made my leg hurt as well I had to go to the hosiptal and they drained it.

I got bit by one two summers ago, I got bit in a very unusaul place, on my cookie! It was very scary and embarrassing!

Ok I know nothing so I am not trying to be difficult....
According to the site I was reading up - http://spiders.Ucr.Edu/av oidbites.Html
and the map with it - http://spiders.Ucr .Edu/images/colorloxmap.Gif
and if my geography is correct - florida is that wiggly bit off in the very bottom right???

It "claims" there are no brown recluse spiders outside of the area's shown.
Now, as I said I know nothing and that is only one site.

But leads the question was it definately a recluse?
Looking at the pics some of our spiders look very very similar indeed but from what I gather we simply do not have those spiders in this country.

First of all that is what I thought too.....But they found them in my friend's house when they did the debugging in her home.....And this one definatly looked like one.....Brandon put it in a bag and is going to show the people when they come and it really looks like one to me. I have taken a pict of it but I can't get my phone to send it to my e-mail. I have tried to send it and some other picts of amelia to my email and I am having troubles.

Just because they say that they dont' exist outside of that area doesn't mean that they aren't.

the brown recluse has been found in alachua, bay, duval, jefferson and leon counties. It typically has a dark violin-shaped mark, although the color is variable.

The mediterranean recluse has been found in dade, escambia, orange and osceola counties. It is very similar in appearance to the brown recluse, but the violin mark tends to be lighter in color and has parallel sides.

The chilean recluse has only recently been found in florida, in polk county. It is the largest and most dangerous of the recluse species. The violin mark of this species is dark and wider in front than behind. Dpi pest alert on the chilean recluse

i live in duval county

that's so scary

I have a deep rooted fear of all spiders (don't know why) so I totally understand your point.

Steve has an official postion as "remover of spiders" in this household!

Lol.....Well I can't stand them they too make my skin crawl along with the 'kool beans phrase' lol.....That and mice.....Ack!!!! Oh and roaches, winged ants, snakes, ect ect ect...Lol

It probably was a wood spider! We've seen about 6 in the past 4 days here!!!!! I *just* killed one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm an arachnaphobic, i'm horrified of them! I do a horrie film scream, then search for something to kill it with.

Down here, they're *baaad*!!

I got bit underneath my arm, parallel with my breast. And it left a hole the size of a cigarette butt around and maybe half a butt deep.

i have a scar that's *huuuge*, and let me tell you, that bite only made me *more* terrified!!!

Sarah

Just a thought to keep in mind...I live in florida as well, so occasionally have the need for pest control to come and spray for critters that make their way into the house....Most pest control agencies that we've dealt with will not guarantee that spiders will be taken care of..Having something to do with how their bodies are designed? I think...Apparently, they are difficult creatures to kill that way...Also, through experience i've learned that it is not a good idea to kill spiders inside the house (stepping on them, swatting them, etc)....Sometimes it's difficult to see whether or not they are carrying baby spiders...If you startle a "pregnant" mother spider or step on it, it will instantly release all of the baby spiders...Much moe difficult to chase down...I've seen hundreds, if not thousands of those little critter things coming out at once (or at least it looked that way)..In any event, we try to gently capture spiders on a piece of paper or into a large cup, covered quickly with some sort of cardboard and then take it immediately outside away from the house.....

I am paraniod of spiders...No matter what the size. And kia my boyfriend matt is also "spider remover" at my house. Or my brother, or dad, or anyone that isnt me.

Ewwww...And not to freak any of you girls out, but did you know that you eat like 8 spiders during your life while you are .S.L.E.E.P.I.N.G.!!!

umm lets just say after I found that out...I have trouble falling asleep now.