Black widow

Spiders of Medical Importance

Quote:

---

There are about 2,000 kinds of spiders in the United States. Of these, only a few species are considered to have bites that are of medical importance. Spiders are very shy creatures. Most people get bitten because they are cleaning an area that has not been cleaned for a long time and they disturb a spider's web or nest. Spiders are often blamed for many more bites than they actually commit. In general, most spider bites will not harm most people except for slight discomfort for a limited time after being bitten. A few individuals may be hypersensitive to the bites of a particular species, but this allergic reaction won't be known until after the person gets bitten. [...]

Black widow venom is a nerve poison and is even more toxic to humans than the prairie rattlesnake. Fortunately, the amount injected from a black widow bite is very small. With humans, the bite may not be felt at first, although a slight local swelling around two tiny spots may be observed. After a short time, there will be severe pain at the site of the bite which will spread throughout the body. Elevated blood pressure, nausea, vomiting, difficulty in breathing and profuse perspiration may occur in severe cases. Symptoms usually diminish within several hours and are gone after several days. Specific medications can be given by a physician that will reduce pain and reduce muscle spasms. It should be emphasized that only four deaths were attributed to black widows from 1960-69 in the U.S. so the incidence of severe reactions to the bite is very infrequent.

---

http://atshq.org/articles/sbadwp.html

Quote:

---

[A]ll spiders, except for one of the 106 spider families (Uloboridae, the hackled orbweavers) and some members of another (Liphistiidae, segmented trapdoor spiders) and all scorpions have venom.

---

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Litovitz et al. 1993 in annual report on the Am. Assoc. of Poison Control Centers Toxic Exposure Surveillance System. Am. J. Emergency Med. 12: 546-584.

From 1989 to 1993, the totals were:
widow spider bites 2,404, deaths 0,
recluse spider bites, 1,453, deaths 0,
other spider bites 560, deaths 0.

---

I didnt mean to sound all . . . poofy (my vocab has abandoned me here, apparently) - I didn't know that myself until recently but it brought up a bunch of interesting thoughts on venom vs poisonous vs toxicity vs perception. Hell - all bees are posionous but from a single sting none can seriously harm you unless you are allergic - and therein lies the rub.

Thats true........bad luck to kill a spider in your house.

you did your homework on this one Marla...you go girl.! lol

I was curious about Smulkin's assertion that most spiders were venomous and not dangerous to humans, so I had to look it up. :) Turns out he was entirely correct!

Every once in a blue moon :P

Even a broken clock is right twice a day. :devil:

Hehehe - and with daylight savings coming I might be able to pull off a trio! :headbang:

I think this topic really brings out how opinionated one can be about their likes ,dislikes,loves and hates .Most visitors of the forum here would be disgusted to read a post here about the killing of a venomous snake near a home? (like the rattle snake round up post a while back ) got a very different responce spiders just like reptiles fill an important niche in the grand scheme of things and just because they creep you out doesent mean you need to kill them. keep an open mind :wink:

amen

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by RobertCoombs

spiders just like reptiles fill an important niche in the grand scheme of things and just because they creep you out doesent mean you need to kill them. keep an open mind :wink:

---

Black widows don't creep me out. I think they're extremely neat and gorgeous to look at (for a spider, anyway). But I still stand by my decision, and I guess we'll all have to agree to disagree or something. I'm a teacher and found about 5 black widows IN MY CLASSROOM over the last year. Sorry, but I had to get rid of them. I could not put myself or the children at risk of being bit. Anyway, can the effects be worse on a child?

But you're absolutely right. If it was a rattlesnake, I wouldn't kill it. I guess I would call the appropriate authorities to remove it or something, but what am I going to do? Call someone and say please take care of this spider for me? I suppose I could try to remove it to another location myself, but then I am risking myself getting bit. I know I won't die from a black widow bite, but that doesn't mean I want to go through the pain/sickness of being bit by one.

Anyway, I just wanted to explain my position. I am very sorry if I offended anyone by saying I would kill a venomous spider, and I won't speak of it again.