Pests, critters, bugs ??

[OC Investor2]

Originally Posted by bhcompy

Brown recluse is not common/indigenous to CA, but the black widow is.

Your'e right my bad. Meant to say "Brown Widows"

O.C. brown widow spider invasion might muscle black widows aside - Green OC - OCRegister.com

[Coldjensens]

We had black widows all over our yard and garage. They are really not that dangerous for most people. I have been bitten by them. It is like a bee sting.

I just learned that mud dauber wasps eat them. Just import some mud daubers.



All spiders have some amount of venom with varying degrees of potency. The fangs of a spider are hollow. The venom is injected through the fangs into the victim (usually an insect). The venom will rapidly paralyze the victim and aid in digestion. Fortunately, most spiders are not dangerous to humans because their fangs are either too short or too fragile to penetrate human skin.
Spiders do not attack in herds. Spiders do not lay in wait and attack people. Spiders do not lift the covers at night and crawl into bed to bite people as they are sleeping. Some spiders can jump but they are not intentionally jumping at humans to attack them. A spider generally bites a human because it was scared and bites to defend itself. Spiders generally prefer to live in undisturbed areas such as corners of the house or the eaves or in the garden where they can catch insects in peace.
Killing spiders with pesticides is difficult. Spraying surfaces is usually ineffective because the spider has minimal contact with the sprayed area. The actual spider or egg sacs must be sprayed with pesticide. The danger of a possible spider bite has to be weighed against the risk of over-using pesticides that probably will not work against spiders.
Bite marks from most spiders are usually too small to easily be seen. Frequently the patient will not recall being bitten. Many of the spider bites will result in pain, small puncture wounds, redness, itching and swelling that lasts a couple of days. Spiders rarely bite more than once, so multiple bites are usually caused by insects such as fleas, bedbugs, ticks, mites and biting flies.


Black widow spider

Black widow spiders generally live in trash, closets, attics, woodpiles, garages and other dark places. They are found throughout California, especially in the warmer regions such as the Central Valley and Southern California. Only the female spider is dangerous to humans.

What does a black widow spider look like?
The black widow spider is a shiny, inky black spider with a large round tail segment (abdomen). Including its legs, the black widow generally measures from one-half inch to one inch in length. Red to orange-colored markings, usually in the shape of an hourglass, are found on the underside of the belly.
What are the symptoms of a bite?
A black widow spider bite gives the appearance of a target, with a pale area surrounded by a red ring. Severe muscle pain and cramps may develop in the first two hours. Severe cramps are usually first felt in the back, shoulders, abdomen and thighs. Other symptoms include weakness, sweating, headache, anxiety, itching, nausea, vomiting, difficult breathing and increased blood pressure. Young children, the elderly and those with high blood pressure are at highest risk of developing symptoms from a black widow spider bite.
How dangerous are black widow spider bites?
If a black widow spider bites a person, do not panic! No one in the United States has died from a black widow spider bite in over 10 years. Very often the black widow will not inject any venom into the bite and no serious symptoms develop. Wash the wound well with soap and water to help prevent infection. If muscle cramps develop, take the patient to the nearest hospital. Some victims, especially young children, may be admitted overnight for observation and treatment. There is treatment for a black widow spider bite that can take care of the symptoms. Various medications are used to treat the muscle cramps, spasms and pain of a bite. Black widow spider antivenin is seldom necessary.

[GandJandB]

Thanks everyone for the input and statements. Seems like no real problems for us. It looks like we will have less issues there in CA, then here in South NJ. That will be another for the + column.

[Coldjensens]

Almost no mosquitoes should get about a dozen +s. Bugs are not much of a problem. Fleas can be if you have pets, but Frontline and a good fumigation two or three times a year eliminates them. We never really had issues with roaches in the house, but sometimes the streets were literally crawling with them. Mice are a problem. Rats if you have avacado trees nearby.

Very few real natural problems. MOst of the So Cal. problems are human related. And there are a lot of those.

[Raelyn28]

In Oregon we had the Black Widow and Hobo spider (which have a very horrible reputation for a terrible bite). One time my son (five at the time) came running in the house from the back yard yelling "mom you know what I just saw outside"? I said what? He said in a very innocent way, "a black Wickham Spider". Sure enough it was a huge black widow.
My entire family calls them black wickhams now LOL. I had never seen them in California...

Originally Posted by bhcompy

Brown recluse is not common/indigenous to CA, but the black widow is.