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Home > Pictures of Spiders > Picture 201271

Latrodectus
(Widow Spiders)

Picture ID 201271

Picture of Latrodectus (Widow Spiders)
  • Submitted by: 
    TomT
  • Submitted: Sep 28, 2024
  • Photographed: Sep 28, 2024
  • Spider: Latrodectus (Widow Spiders)
  • Location: Richmond, Virginia, United States
  • Spotted Outdoors: Man-made structure (building wall, fences, etc.),Ground layer (leaf litter, dirt, grass, etc)
  • Found in web?: No
  • Attributes:
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Nod

I am fairly sure this is one of the true widow spiders….I think it could be a southern black widow. I think it is an adult going by the legs..sometimes adult females retain part of their juvenile colors.
https://bugguide.net/node/view/2035679/bgimage

Last edited 1 year ago by Nod
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TomT

Thanks for the ID— I snapped the photo because it looked interesting, but it wasn’t until I got home that I zoomed in and got a better look at the pattern. Yikes! It was just rambling down the sidewalk in front of a Walgreens. I’m new around here— what’s the protocol when you encounter a dangerous species like that so far from its natural habitat? I’m a live-and-let-live guy, but should I have squashed her to protect others?

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Nod

I’m afraid I am not from the US so I can’t give you any advice on that.

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