Are they poisonous? (Raleigh, Hickory, Granite Falls: apartment, house, landscaping)

[alaskangirl]

I've lived in Alaska all my life, so when someone says that bugs live everywhere, I laugh at them. My mom says that she loves Alaska because all you have to worry about is so big you'll see from pretty far away. Sure, we have bugs, but they really aren't that bad. In all reality, mosquitos are bigger than anywhere else, I'm told. So, when my husband joined the military and was stationed in North Carolina, I was excited. It's very beautiful (I went once for a week several years ago). But then my mom reminded me that I need to check in between my sheets and shake my shoes. I have a hard enough time with the tiny spiders here (I scream and jump onto the nearest thing), how am I going to handle them down there? I've never really been scared of anything else, but I've never had to deal with them either. I'm afraid that my newborn baby will get bitten, or when he starts crawling, which he will soon, he'll try to grab something. Be completely honest, please.

[Dedalus]

There are two poisonous spiders found in the US. The Black Widow, and the Brown Recluse. Both are fairly large, I do not think you have any worries about little teeny tiny ones. But, you should check the web for those names, that I'm sure of.

Don't be frightened!

[anonymous]

The only place you will find a black widow is in a dark, mildewy place that is very rarely disturbed. It's very uncommon to find them inside your house. I've seen them underneath the house before, but they are small, very slow and just stay on their web. You shouldn't find them crawling around the house.

I've never actually seen a brown reclouse before, but supposedly they are the same way. For example, if you have a pair of boots you haven't worn in years, left in the attic, then you'd need to check.

The vast majority of spiders aren't harmful, and fear of them is usually irrational. IMO the best way to get over your fear is to understand what is dangerous and what isn't dangerous. If you're just freaked out of bugs in general.. well, I guess it would be better to just get used to them. Not sure what to tell you.

I'm extremely cautious around black widows and always on the lookout for a brown reclouse, but otherwise spiders don't bother me. We even had a pet spider out in the yard.

[MaimounaKande]

Sounds to me like you wouldn't want to live in AZ, but you would be fine in NC! In AZ, we had to check our shoes for scorpions on a regular basis, and plenty of other creepy crawleys. But here in NC, it hasn't been like that at all. I really don't think you'd need tos hake your shoes out unless, as someone said, they'd been in the attic or garage for years.

The black widow does not leave its web so in order to bitten, you would need to disturb it. Even in AZ, where there are tons of black widows on cacti, in garages, etc (WAY more than here), people were rarely bittne b/c they do not crawl around. (People were bittne by scorpions all time b/c they DO crawl around!)

Now Copperheads here make me nervous...especially as we live by a stream and the neighbors tell me there are a fair number of them along the stream and in the wooded areas (which is most of our property!). We ahve small kids, so I'm not thrilled about that, and didn't really know about them til moving here.

As long as your fear is of spiders and not snakes you should be fine

[cowboy_wilhelm]

Yes, I would worry more about scorpions. When it comes to fight or flight, they fight! Those things can be mean. The stings aren't too bad, just feels like a tiny pin going into your skin. The ones around here also aren't that poisonous, so the reaction usually isn't too bad either. They crawl around and can be found anywhere. I was stung on the foot even after beating my shoes together and on the floor to try and get any critters out...

Black Widows do stay in their webs, but sometimes you'll find their webs on accident. I stuck my hand under a railroad tie used for landscaping straight into a Black Widow's web. The thought never crossed my mind, and I just barely missed the spider and a nasty bite. You can always distinguish the Black Widow from other spiders by their jet black bodies and red hour glass shape on their abdomen.

The Brown Recluse is a little more pesky. It leaves its web to hunt at night, and are about the size of a quarter. I found some pictures of bites. Ugh!

Most other spider bites aren't that bad. They itch like crazy and can turn a nasty color, but otherwise won't hurt you.

[southward bound]

>You can always distinguish the Black Widow from other spiders by their jet >black bodies and red hour glass shape on their abdomen.

I get a kick out of this every time I read it about the black widdow spider. Yep...just gimme a minute...let me turn this black spider over and see if it has a red hourglass shape on its tummy, and then I'll know what kind it is.

I reached into a mailbox and found a jumping some-thing-or-other staring back at me. I did considerable research and discovered what it's called, but forgot now. He was a strange looking critter, and I'll never forget him. I believe he had 5 or 6 eyes, and kept ALL of them on my every move. On the net it said that he is "affectionately called jumping something something..." I would not have used the term "affectionately" with him, but those who know their spiders say he's got quite a personality. He's not poisonous, and will not bite unless cornered. Now that I think of it, he really was magnificent looking, with his intricate markings on the furry body. I haven't seen a black widow or brown recluse in NC (and we had them up north, too). We have an interesting spider in the summer that weaves its web every night, and takes it up one silken thread at a time in the morning at break of dawn, and crawls under the eaves somewhere to sleep until nightfall, when he comes out again.
They don't bother me, I don't bother them. We co-exist. The Museum of Natural Science in Raleigh is a good place to visit and learn about these critters.

[alaskangirl]

Okay, I sat up and read all of the threads about spiders all night and I've come to a conclusion. We're moving into an apartment, so it should be taken care of regularly (my husband says this, but he's alaskan, too). And, we're getting a cat so I don't have to worry so much. My fear of spiders is very irrational and I want to get past it. I often learn what I can so I understand them, but they still give me the willies. Now snakes and other things I've never been scared of because the only ones I saw were behind glass at zoos. So, I hope that I know how to handle those when I see them (they won't exactly fit under a glass like a spider).

[IslandGirl]

I am moving to Granite Falls, NC and moving into a development. It is near Lake Hickory. There are no streams on my property - but I do have a grove of pine trees on one side of my home. I like to garden, but am not so sure after reading these posts. I also went to the link about the brown recluse spider - is this first aid kit something I should buy to have on hand? Does this mean that any work to be done in the crawlspace is going to be scary?
How prevalent are these things - the black widow, the brown recluse and are there really scorpions in NC in that area near Lake Hickory? Scorpions...they look like little lobsters or something? All I remember is a part of an Aliens movie where the Scorpions were like 4 lb. lobsters scrambling around the lab.
Ugh, maybe I should sell my home in NC and stay in CT. I am in the process of moving now....what about my dogs? I have 3 dogs that love the outdoors -- are they going to have to be inside more or something?
Maybe the cold weather, the cold people and the snow isn't so bad after all, atleast I don't have to worry about venomous spiders and snakes!!
IslandGirl

[IslandGirl]

And while we are on the subject, I may as well ask. I am a boater and like to go swimming. Are water mocassins something I need to be aware and informed about? Anyone know if they are in Lake Hickory or Lake Norman or if there are any other critters in the Lake that will be offensive? IslandGirl

[kd83]

Originally Posted by southward bound

>You can always distinguish the Black Widow from other spiders by their jet >black bodies and red hour glass shape on their abdomen.

I get a kick out of this every time I read it about the black widdow spider. Yep...just gimme a minute...let me turn this black spider over and see if it has a red hourglass shape on its tummy, and then I'll know what kind it is.

I reached into a mailbox and found a jumping some-thing-or-other staring back at me. I did considerable research and discovered what it's called, but forgot now. He was a strange looking critter, and I'll never forget him. I believe he had 5 or 6 eyes, and kept ALL of them on my every move. On the net it said that he is "affectionately called jumping something something..." I would not have used the term "affectionately" with him, but those who know their spiders say he's got quite a personality. He's not poisonous, and will not bite unless cornered. Now that I think of it, he really was magnificent looking, with his intricate markings on the furry body. I haven't seen a black widow or brown recluse in NC (and we had them up north, too). We have an interesting spider in the summer that weaves its web every night, and takes it up one silken thread at a time in the morning at break of dawn, and crawls under the eaves somewhere to sleep until nightfall, when he comes out again.
They don't bother me, I don't bother them. We co-exist. The Museum of Natural Science in Raleigh is a good place to visit and learn about these critters.

I agree..but you mostly see them in their webs so you can see the hourglass..its when you dont see them at all that they're dangerous b/c they are spooked from accidental presence and will bite them