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Wow! I never knew that about mice... there are a LOT of mice in Michigan - one lives in my house in fact! My cats are too well fed to hunt I guess, I'm wondering if the mice in Michigan carry the same diseases... better go check.
And NO, I have no clue as to what a black widow spider web looks like, I'll try google-ing it.
Black Widow spiders occur in a lot of places, they are not agrssive, they are small, their webs are typically a mess, not a normal spider web, but a jumb of bits of leaves, twigs etc, usually near the ground, usually under something (but not allays). I usually do not pick stuff up without kicking it first and watching what I am doing... It's not really as bad as Miami, FL, Baltimore, MD etc
And NO, I have no clue as to what a black widow spider web looks like, I'll try google-ing it.
Thank you all again.
Terri
Thought of you when I encountered one two days ago, Terri, this is for you. Don't be afraid, just be aware:
Black Widow and nest in my yard June 11, 2011, New Mexico. This is what their nests/webs look like. Kind of a messy collection. Noticed her while watering a flower bed and cleaning up. Glossy body and the Red Hourglass marking on the underside. Three still photo's and then a video which is not edited, uploaded directly from computer. Taken with a Canon SX10.
Wide angle view, the nest is that little clump of leaves in the corner of the wall, just above the dirt level. I was watering a flower bed, she started running and I noticed her:
You can see the glossy black body and no apparent hair:
As she climbs around you can see the Red Hourglass marking. This is a Black Widow. Very small, this one maybe 1/4 inch or less body width:
Not National Geographic video, straight out of the camera,
but a bit educational:
Boy, I never would have thought that little blob of "stuff" was a spider nest! Thanks Rich, those pictures are priceless. Ya know, she didn't really look scary at all, kind of cute actually - terrible house keeper... kind of like me when I'm in the middle of getting ready for a pottery show
You really OUGHT to send your video to one of those sites that teaches about spiders. It was REALLY clear and when you zoomed out it gave a great perspective on it's actually size.
So if they're not aggressive, how does one get bit by one, is it only when you accidentally mess up it's nest or touch them by mistake? They're so tiny they could easily go unnoticed.
Maybe moth balls placed in corners would be enough to make them not want to be in the area? As long as they're not LOOKING for a fight, I'd just as soon encourage them to move on. Maybe they'll poison the toxic mice
Thank you again Rich, I appreciate that you took the time to help me.
So if they're not aggressive, how does one get bit by one, is it only when you accidentally mess up it's nest or touch them by mistake? They're so tiny they could easily go unnoticed.
Thank you again Rich, I appreciate that you took the time to help me.
Terri
The Black Widow might protect their nest or egg sac. But I have never seen any aggressive ones, I have seen some hide as you walk by. You see them in corners and wood piles. I think most people might not note them. Not paying attention etc, picking something up. I like to flip things over with a stick or hoe before I pick it up. Heck, I've been scared by doodle bugs or whatever when they jump out. I live in Rio Rancho, in a regular neighborhood and most of my neighbors claim they don't have Black Widows... I have found them almost every year and always outside...
Some sprays will note if they kill Black Widows and Scorpions, may will not.
Terri, glad you enjoyed, it's just a matter of being alert...
As a frightening historical side note, in the outhouse days the most common place to be bit by a blackwidow, for a man at least, hung down a little further than the rest.
Just a wee bit of caution and there is not a problem. I wouldn't even spray for them and I'd worry about mice more.
Yeah, the mice will be a problem for me... here in Michigan they're pretty cute and harmless, so I never even think about getting rid of them... have even been known to feed some of the little ones when they look pitiful in the winter here (at the barn, not my kitchen).
So after research, I've found that some of them carry a pretty bad disease that you can catch while cleaning up their waste etc. - which concerns me because I'll be making my pottery studio in an outbuilding or at least a garage.. maybe I should have a professional "mouse waste" cleaner person do it? After that, it should be up to my cats to keep them OUT (they aren't harmful to cats are they)?
Thanks... what a bunch of REALLY FRIENDLY AND HELPFUL people you all are - I'm looking forward to the move... AND, these wildfire issues aren't in the Estancia area... are they?
Yeah, the mice will be a problem for me... here in Michigan they're pretty cute and harmless, so I never even think about getting rid of them... have even been known to feed some of the little ones when they look pitiful in the winter here (at the barn, not my kitchen).
Mice?!? Cute?!? Oh...lordy.
I absolutely cannot stand mice, rats, squirrels and other rodents! Give me a snake any day, LOL!
I rehab orphan squirrels... they're pretty "cheeky", but boy are they ever sweet! They're smart too, they team work you when there's more than one in a crate. Two or more will fake being asleep while another one begs at the door to come out for a snack... once you open the door, all eyes are WIDE OPEN and they bolt through the door in mass! Great fun catching them back up.
I rehab orphan squirrels... they're pretty "cheeky", but boy are they ever sweet! They're smart too, they team work you when there's more than one in a crate. Two or more will fake being asleep while another one begs at the door to come out for a snack... once you open the door, all eyes are WIDE OPEN and they bolt through the door in mass! Great fun catching them back up.
Kind of like a squirrel rodeo
t.
LOL!! They're probably cute in that situation, but not when they are out in their element/wild pigging out on bird feeders, chewing wires , and just being squirrely nuisances....
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, and just being squirrely nuisances....
