Latrodectus
(Widow Spiders)

Latrodectus, commonly known as Widow Spiders, is a genus of spiders in the family Theridiidae. Latrodectus spiders have been sighted 244 times by contributing members. Based on collected data, the geographic range for Latrodectus includes 16 countries and 33 states in the United States. Latrodectus is most often sighted outdoors, and during the month of May.

Taxonomic Hierarchy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Suborder: Araneomorphae
Family: Theridiidae
Genus: Latrodectus

Common Name (AAS)

Widow Spiders

Other Common Names

Cobweb Spiders, Cob Web Spiders, Comb-footed Spiders, Tangle-web Spiders, Gumfoot-web Spiders, Button Spiders (Africa)

Author

Charles Athanase Walckenaer, 1805

Sightings Overview

There have been 244 confirmed sightings of Latrodectus (Widow Spiders), with the most recent sighting submitted on April 20, 2025 by Spider ID member dude65. The detailed statistics below may not utilize the complete dataset of 244 sightings because of certain Latrodectus sightings reporting incomplete data.

Web: 42% of the time, Latrodectus spiders are sighted in a spider web (Sample size: 238)
Sex: 41 female and 38 male.
Environment: Latrodectus has been sighted 186 times outdoors, and 80 times indoors.
Outdoors: Man-made structure (121). On flower (1). Low foliage (15). High foliage (7). Ground layer (20). Under rock or debris (15). Open field, pasture, grassland (1). Forest (2). Desert area (4).

Location and Range

Latrodectus (Widow Spiders) has been sighted in the following countries: Afghanistan, Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, Brazil, Curacao, India, Israel, Mexico, Pakistan, Qatar, South Africa, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United States.

Latrodectus has also been sighted in the following states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia.