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We killed a black widow in the garage last week. I hated doing it, because spiders kill insects, but I didn't want one of the kids to get bitten. The current bane of my existence is ants, I can't figure out where they are coming into the house.
that's where I usually get them too -- they keep to themselves for the most part, but you know they are there. I have 2 little people who love the garage for their bikes and whatnot, i can't take the risk either and kill them regularly.
As for the ants, this may sound silly, but look outside for where they are trailing. Pour lots of boiling water on them. I had a mound living about 10' from my french doors and couldn't get rid of the darn things. Since it was so close to where the boys play i didn't want to kill it with poison. Went the boiling water route and it worked. Also check for potted plants, in particular with this heat, the ants love to live where they know they will get a constant source of water! Good luck with that!
To the OP - there are nasty spiders here that you WILL FIND if you go looking for them. But, as stated in my original reply, the fire ants pose more of a day to day threat to your kids and peace of mind!
Live here my whole life...never seen a black widow (or never been surprised by one). Seen several snakes, but nothing to write home about...you have to be somewhere pretty woodsy to get bitten by one. As for alligators...never seen one or heard of one in Raleigh. We're borderline mid-atlantic/southeast in terms of habitat.
I always took comfort from the posts that said "Live here my whole life...never seen a black widow". I figured I've only been here a year, no sweat. I'm sure I won't see one for a very long time.
I killed one in the kitchen sink the other day. I had brought it in with harvested vegetables (lettuce and herbs), put them in the sink, trimmed everything for washing later and left the trimmings in the sink because I had to run out on an errand. When I got back an hour later and went to clean the sink there was this BIG black spider - beautiful black, I might add - and I thought to myself...hmmm...is this one? I thought, 'how do I turn it over to see if it really is a black widow." Well, I took a piece of paper towel, took a hold of it, and looked at its underside. Sure enough. I even took it out to the porch to show hubby. However, when I went to flush it I discovered I hadn't squeezed hard enough. It was very much alive and tried to run up the side of the toilet bowl. I've never flushed a toilet so fast before!
To think I carried that thing in, in a big collader with veggies, under my arm! (She really WAS strikingly beautiful, deep black, not washed out or faded like some other spiders.)
I remember seeing a messy web when I plucked the lettuce, but didn't think anything of it. I later learned that their webs are characteristically very messy looking. There is no pretty pattern to it as there is with other spiders.
Never saw one in the crawl space the few times I went in there. I understand that they are frequently found under those fake rocks that cover the wells, so be careful before you reach in.
I hate spiders, and I'm able to live here without panicking too much (which is what I do when I see big or weird spiders). The Orkin guy did tell me that probably every crawlspace has black widows or other spiders, but I've never seen anything too bad (just small spiders, daddy longlegs, etc.) However, if you're really freaked out about bugs, plan to panic a bit. I hate bugs and see ticks, cockroaches, ants and fireants, and other gross things on a regular basis. As for snakes, I've seen two tiny skinny snakes in 4 years, both in the garden. There are copperheads in this area, but I've been lucky to avoid them even with frequent trips to Durant Road Nature Park and its trails and lakes.
Although NC has 7 species of venomous snakes, Wake County is home to only two, the Copperhead and Cottonmouth. However, snakes hate people too and will avoid those human traffic areas if possible. Unless you're some sort of rural outdoorsman, swampman or home trash collector, you probably never see a venomous one in the wild.
[url=http://www.bio.davidson.edu/projects/herpcons/herps_of_NC/snakes/snakes.html]Snakes of North Carolina[/url]
[url=http://www.fws.gov/nc-es/reptile/alligat.html]American Alligators in North Carolina[/url]
there are also timber rattlesnakes in Wake County I killed one last year.
Lots of good advice in this thread. I think just about every locale in these United States has some kind of critters that pose varying levels of threats. The locals just learn how to coexist (or else they leave ). I've lived here for 18 years, and I go out in the woods quite a bit and in the yard/house a lot. Here is my take:
* No gators. They are southeast of here. If one did find its way here, it would be in the dead of summer, likely on the waterways, and HIGHLY, HIGHLY unusual. It's just not a concern.
* Snakes...yes. Most likely you will see copperheads. The two I've seen have been on the sidewalk at work, and on the stream bank at the Factory Outlet Mall.
* Spiders...yes. Black widow (very common) and brown recluse (less common, or less commonly seen...hey, it's called a RECLUSE). Widows are almost everywhere. Underneath the gutter splashblock, in nooks in the garage, and in the water meter hole...places like this are almost guaranteed to host widows. Spray a bit of spider spray in places you don't want them, and they will generally stay away for at least several years.
* Ticks - I've pulled a few off me. Learn to check for them on you and your kids in the warm months. Possible to get Rocky Mountain spotted fever or Lyme disease, which is why you check. Don't sweat it too much, but don't ignore it; it's easy to do.
* Fire ants - possible transplants never mention these, because they don't have them up north (but they ARE moving north; they are in MD - I've seen them at my in-laws, and they are on the MD invasive species watch). I've used bait; never used the boiling water. Put the bait out without disturbing the mound, otherwise they can move a few yards over and re-establish.
* Mosquitoes - Better here than the Gulf coast and the upper midwest, but worse here than many other places. I despise them, because they seek me out, the welts are really big and itchy, and only heavy Deet-containing repellants seem to work for me. A screened-in porch is your friend :-)
So. For this area, we locals basically just watch out for the critters, keep a neat yard and garage, pre-emptively spray a bit of spray in very likely areas that they will get (like under thresholds or splashblocks), but not areas you don't care about (water meter hole - hey, it's wireless now), and check for critters in the evening. Don't sweat these things too much. You'll just have to learn a few different rules of thumb. I have had to learn a couple in other places I've lived.
When I was little in the Piedmont of SC, my grandparents kept a can of Raid and a flyswatter on the kitchen table
I am thinking of moving to Raleigh, NC from Pennsylvania, but I'v heard stories of lots of snakes.. some venomous.. black widows.. and even alligators- showing up in the neighborhood around Raleigh! Is this dangerous for kids? Has anyone heard of people there being harmed by these critters? Do they pose threats to kids safety in particular?
Thank you
No lived here forever and there are snakes but you don't really see them. Yes black widows but don't bother you and gators NO. It is a great place
Although NC has 7 species of venomous snakes, Wake County is home to only two, the Copperhead and Cottonmouth. However, snakes hate people too and will avoid those human traffic areas if possible. Unless you're some sort of rural outdoorsman, swampman or home trash collector, you probably never see a venomous one in the wild.
Falls Lake area is home to a healthy population of rattlers.
Are they problematic? No. Copperheads are far and away much more abundant in this area. But it's shortsighted to say wake county doesn't have_____, etc. It's simply not true.
Gators shouldn't be a concern unless you travel south or east of the Triangle area. The one pulled from Falls Lake was believed go have been released there. The closer you get to the coast, the more you'll find.
Last edited by TheBigKahunaNC; 05-17-2018 at 08:34 AM..
Falls Lake area is home to a healthy population of rattlers.
Are they problematic? No. Copperheads are far and away much more abundant in this area. But it's shortsighted to say wake county doesn't have_____, etc. It's simply not true.
Gators shouldn't be a concern unless you travel south or east of the Triangle area. The one pulled from Falls Lake was believed go have been released there. The closer you get to the coast, the more you'll find.
I think this is fairly accurate. We have "predominately" Copperheads as far as poisonous snakes go. Others could be around, and I specifically thought about the occasional rattler (I've seen one in 41 years in NC, in a very rural part of Lee County, and I spend a LOT of time in the woods). As for Copperheads, they are not deadly unless you totally ignore the fact you got bit, and they are among the shyest, and most docile snake varieties, which means that you almost have to be not paying attention, and step on one to get bit. I knew one lady who got bit, she was stacking bails of hay. She was 70 years old, decided to finish stacking the hay before going to the doctor, which caused her to get a nasty infection and it took her a LONG time to heal. But that involved her making several mistakes: Bailing hay without gloves, she actually grabbed the snake by accident, and ignoring the fact that she got bit for a couple hours, compounding the problem.
Spiders: Not a real problem.
Alligators: The only Alligator bites I've ever known of are on the appetizer menu at Big Easy. They are pretty good too!
OP, I moved from Pittsburgh to Charlotte in 1977, and have spent the last 25 years in the Triangle area. You really don't have anything to worry about. (Unless you are afraid of "transplant BBQ" or crappy pizza...) <---inside joke there...
No, saying there are "only two" venomous snakes in Wake County is not at all accurate. Doesn't matter how you twist it. There are more than two species of venomous snakes here. Proven. Fact. Period. I've not seen a copperhead in over 20 years, but know plenty of people who have. But my not seeing one doesn't mean they aren't here. I easily see dozen of snakes a year. I'm outdoors a lot. In the woods, on the water, etc. I haven't seen a venomous snake in the wild in many, many years. But they exist. It's all random luck. And not something worth transplants worrying about.
And snakes aren't poisonous.
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icky things
). I've lived here for 18 years, and I go out in the woods quite a bit and in the yard/house a lot. Here is my take:
