When it comes to fears of being bitten the brown recluse reigns supreme. It's not that this pest is large and so the bite would be very painful or cause an immediate open wound. In fact most people aren't even aware that they have been bitten until a few hours pass by and the swelling and other symptoms begin to set in. The fear with the recluse bite is not the initial bite, it is the aftermath and the on going progression of the wound that people fear most. The only other bites that folks fear as much would be snake bites or one from a black widow spider. It is the recluse however that comes with ready made stories about gaping wounds that never heal and even the extreme of cutting off hands or limbs to stop the poisons. This only half truth has spread through out the nation as everyone is at risk when in reality only a moderate region of the United States in documented to having the brown recluse as a native pest.

Now recluses can be found in places that are not native for them but they do not thrive outside of their area so they rarely get established enough to cause any problems. They end up in these places in furniture shipments or moving vans stowed away in items that they have hidden in. The normal territory of this spider goes from northern Texas to the west side of Georgia and as high as parts of Kentucky and Iowa. Florida is the mecca for all bugs it seems but there has only been six reports of the recluse and their bites in that state over the last one hundred years. So it seems the heartland of America is the place for the recluse and that is where you will find almost all of this spider population.

The recluse gets its name because it is reclusive. They shy away from anything that can't be eaten so people and pets are avoided. They do live in homes but only venture out at night to hunt and hide during the day and most folks are none the wiser. Recluse use webbing around their nests and for the precious egg sacs but not to catch food. This web is not like an orb spider and is usually irregular around the entry. If the spider can't make its way back to the nest before morning it will find a quiet place to hide and wait for the next night to move out again.

It is common for homes to have large numbers of this arachnid since the occupants don't realize they have a infestation. Pest professionals often report of killing a hundred or more brown recluse in a home that has never been sprayed. This large number takes time to build up because recluse females do not produce hundreds of babies at a time and only lays her eggs sacs once or twice per year. Even in homes with many recluses it is far more likely to find a dead one in the normal course of a day than it is to see live ones scurrying up the wall because of the nature of this spider. The recluse also does not need to eat or drink every day as is the case with other bugs. They can last six months with nothing and so they simply wait patiently to find food. They are also durable in that they can survive the hot attic temperatures in the summer or cold rooms in a home such as the basement.

This durable spider then really has no desire to search out humans or pets and stays clear from their activity as much as possible. The main cause of interaction and folks being bitten is when the spider is either rolled on by accident when it crawls onto your bed or perhaps if it were hiding in an article of clothing. Once the human rolls on the spider or puts pressure on it their instinct is to bite. Even so, the bite must be directly on the skin as their fangs are not powerful enough to even go through clothing. The wound of a recluse bite can get ugly and quite large and some last for months but in most cases the site heals up in about three weeks and no medical attention is required. It is the few bites that turn bad that get the most press and even Doctors assume that every spider bite is a recluse when classic signs begin to appear. Actually, the yellow sac spider also delivers a necrotic venom and is far more likely the spider in question. It is virtually impossible to identify a bite from the wound itself and without the captured spider not even a medical professional can know for sure. In the end this tiny little spider gets all the blame when all he wants to do is live a quiet life tucked away in a corner never wanting so much as a friendly smile from anyone else who lives in the house.

No other spider causes such fear of not only its bite but its painful aftermath. Myths and half truths rule the day but not for those who choose to be informed and trade in their fears, for these people therecluse is a manageable problem and one that won't rule their lives.