Black Widows?

Question

i found a spider on my rain boot and i dont know what kind it is. it is black and resembles a black widow. the only difference is it has two dots rather than an hourglass. when we tried to put it in a glass it curled up and it hasnt uncurled. does anyone know what kind it is

Answer 1

Like any creatures, sometimes markings are not the perfect assumed shape we expect. If it looks like the photos on this page, I would not mess with it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_widow_spider

Some of the ones in these photos do have ill-formed "hour glasses."

Answer 2

As "Indigo" stated, the hourglass marking may not be as cut and dry as it may seem. The two sections of the hourglass may seperate to form two distinct different "dots" on it's abdomen. Also, they are not always red, they could be white to yellow to orange, although they are most commonly red. The Black Widow will also have a small dot, which is usually red, just before their spineret, on their undersides.

Although the Black Widow is not an aggressive spider, it's venom is quite potent, one of the most potent in the world, in fact. In my opinion, there are only two other arachnids that have a more potent venom, and neither one lives in the U.S. The Black Widow's venom is about 10 to 15 times more potent than a Rattlesnakes venom. However, this arachnid's chelicerae (fangs) are very small, and it is really hard for this spider to effectively penetrate a human's skin in order to inject a sufficient amount of venom to be deadly. Thus fatalities from this spider are almost non-existent. That is not to say that a bite from this spider is not dangerous, as it is, and some very unpleasant side effects are likely to occur, which includes necrosis (soft tissue distruction). These wounds may take months and even years to entirely heal, are very painful, and extremely un-sightly.

Since you have the spider in a glass, I would take it someplace away from where you live and let it go. I know I would keep it for while and observe it, but I am a spider fanatic.

Have fun, don't kill it, and be careful when handling it!!!!!

Answer 3

If you want to be sure if it is a black widow check its web. A black widow is noticeably tougher than most other spiders web. It is as close as you can get to the strength of thread. Find a dark sheltered place(away from home) to release it. Come back in a week to check. It is looking for a narrow place to spend the day and will come out at night. If it is dark during the day it will stay out. (I have lots between my joists under the house) Their egg mass is a small round ball of silk a little bigger than a marble(with hundreds of young)