Safety note: Venomous bite — do not handle.
The Southern Black Widow is one of the most venomous spiders in North America, with the shiny black female bearing the iconic red hourglass marking on her underside. Its venom is a neurotoxin (latrotoxin) that causes intense pain, muscle cramping, and sweating, though fatalities are rare with modern medical care. Females spin irregular tangled webs in dark, sheltered locations and are generally nonaggressive unless directly threatened.
Habitat
Sheltered dark areas, wood piles, outbuildings, and dense vegetation
Diet
Adults: insects and other arthropods caught in webs
How common
Common
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