Creepy spider crawls into hidden spaces of bay area

Brown widows move north from Miami. But the timid spider will keep its poisonous fangs to itself if left alone.

By MAUREEN BYRNE AHERN
© St. Petersburg Times
published September 10, 2002

As a part-time mechanic, Tom Plaster often spends time underneath vehicles. And he says he almost always has company: brown widow spiders.

"I started seeing them last year, but not in the numbers like this year," said the 46-year-old Seminole resident. "I get the heebie-jeebies now."

He should. They're poisonous like their close cousin, the better-known black widow.

The number of brown widow spiders in Florida continues to grow as they move north from Miami up into Central Florida. The spider has made its presence known in the Tampa Bay area. People are finding them everywhere: in shoes, behind car visors, under flower pots, in piles of wood, beneath tables and chairs, in the angles of doors and windows.

Opal Schallmo, an urban horticulturist for the Pinellas County Cooperative Extension Service, says she first started hearing local reports of brown widows in 1999. "This year we get calls almost daily about them," she said.

The calls aren't coming in as frequently at the extension services in Hillsborough and Pasco counties. "But we've got them, that's for sure," said JoAnn Hoffman, an urban horticulture assistant for Hillsborough's extension service.

Most people want to know how they can get rid of the spiders and are told: Clean house routinely. Reduce clutter. Fill in cracks and holes. Brush down webs.

"Brown widows can be anywhere, any place they can build a web," said G.B. Edwards, curator of arachnids for the Florida State Collection of Arthropods in Gainesville.

But the good news is they're extremely timid spiders. They try their best to avoid humans, and if they do encounter people, they become very still.

"The only way to get one to bite you is to trap it against your skin," Edwards said.

That's what happened in the only verified brown widow bite that Edwards knows of. A couple of years ago, a Tampa man was carrying plywood into his home. The eight-legged critter fell on his chest, the man clasped it against his skin and the spider dug in its tiny fangs. The man was sick for about a week.

Symptoms are similar to black widow bites, but not as severe or long-lasting. The poison attacks the body's nervous and muscular systems, producing headaches, numbness or tingling in the extremities and cramping. Elderly persons, children and pregnant women are more at risk, but death is rare.

Why are counts of the creepy crawlers climbing?

Originally from Africa, the 11/2-inch spider crept its way into South Florida about a half-century ago. They've been moving up the state ever since. There even have been brown widow sightings in South Carolina and Texas.

Simply put, the brown widow rules the house when it comes to spiders.

"It's just been a gradual process of them driving out the other spiders," Edwards said. "They just seem to be better adapted to man-made areas where they invade."

Edwards' advice is to just use common sense. "Unless you're really paranoid, it's not really worth it," he said of efforts to eradicate the spiders.

"It's good to be aware of them and just don't get careless around them."

Brown widow spider

(Latrodectus geometricus)

-- Originated in Africa and introduced to southeastern Florida 50 years ago

-- Sightings in Pinellas County since late 1990s

-- Color varies from light tan to dark brown; underside of abdomen has orange hourglass shape

-- Full body size is 1-11/2 inches

-- Egg sac is covered with pointed spikes

-- Found indoors beneath tables and desks, behind shutters, in folds of clothing; lives outdoors in crawl spaces, piles of lumber, abandoned vehicles, storage sheds

-- Bites usually happen when spider is pressed against a person's skin when putting on clothes or by sticking hands in recessed areas

-- Symptoms include severe headaches, muscle aches, cramping

-- If you think you've been bitten, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 and consult a doctor

-- Routine cleaning with gloves on is best way to eliminate spiders

-- Source: University of Florida Extension Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences

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