Who is the black widow spider? Description and photo of the black widow spider

And remember: in order not to come face to face with such an unpleasant “lady” as a black widow, you just need to follow some rules:

• if there is a possibility of encountering a spider or you are in its habitat, then you need to dress so as not to leave a single exposed area of ​​the body;
• in the case of outdoor recreation, make sure that the place of rest and overnight stay is not located in the area of ​​​​various soil depressions, rodent burrows and cobwebs on plants;
• after a walk in the area where spiders are likely to live, carefully check your clothes so as not to bring a poisonous guest into the house in the folds of the fabric;
• If you meet a spider on your way, then under no circumstances touch it or its cocoons.

• At the moment, spiders of the black widow genus continue to live in Rostov region in the amount of about 2,000 individuals, and over the past years there have even been 2 recorded cases of them attacking people.
• If the black widow senses even the slightest danger, she immediately falls out of the web and pretends to be dead. The female of this spider feels very insecure and awkward outside her usual environment.
• When attacking a victim, the black widow inflicts a wound on it using chelicerae and then injects digestive enzymes into it. After some time, the victim's body liquefies and the spider drinks it like a nutritional shake.
• Previously, the black widow was considered the most poisonous spider on the planet, but recently it was removed from its pedestal.

Know that a black widow will never attack unless necessary, so treat her with respect and limit yourself to observation, because even spiders can learn something.

Spider karakurt or black widow in the photo as in life it looks quite harsh. And not in vain. Since the venom of this spider is 10 times more dangerous than poison rattlesnake. The most unpleasant thing is that this spider previously lived only in America, later the black widow settled the territory of the southern Dnieper region, and starting in 2009, the spiders expanded their habitat, appearing in most cities in Ukraine and parts of Russia. And this is not surprising, since the black widow spider moves with the wind. To do this, he weaves himself a so-called poutine - a parachute.

Karakurt is quite easy to recognize, as it is the blackest spider in the world. He is "pot-bellied" and moves very slowly and clumsily. Feature Karakurt females are characterized by the presence of red spots on the abdomen; the number of these spots in an adult is 13. The female karakurt has a round body resembling a bean. The length of the female, taking into account the length of the legs, is 2-3 cm. The male black widow or karakurt is more active, but much smaller in size. Its body is only 4-7 mm and has an oval shape. Unlike the female, the male has red specks on the back.

Black widow spider photo, which is better to see at least once. Since a karakurt bite is very dangerous, it is almost impossible to detect it immediately, since before the “meal” the spider injects an anesthetic, numbing the bite site. And after 15-17 minutes a person can be completely paralyzed, so everyone who is bitten needs emergency help.

It is reassuring that spiders do not hunt people, but bite them for self-defense, thereby demonstrating a natural reflex. However, it is not always possible to notice their presence; spiders go out to search for food in the fields. This is where they may come across people who accidentally disturbed them during the hunt. Karakurts feed mainly on beetles and locusts. Most often the female bites. Female karakurts weave their webs in dark places - abandoned houses, garages, piled up boards.

Interesting fact! Why do you think the karakurt was nicknamed the black widow? The thing is that to fertilize one female karakurt, from 12 to 17 males are needed. IN mating season the males line up, each of them dances their mating dance and fertilizes the female, after which they try to quickly run away, since after sexual intercourse the female mercilessly eats her partner. The lucky ones still manage to escape, but the last one is 100% eaten by the female. At one time, the female is able to fill from 2 to 5 cocoons, each of which contains about 500 eggs. For this she needs strength and nutrients, which are contained in male karakurt.

One of the most common arthropods throughout the Earth is the black widow spider. Its variety has 31 subspecies. These spiders make their home in secluded places where there is little sun and enough small insects.

One of the most common arthropods throughout the Earth is the black widow spider.

Ruthless arthropod cannibal

The Black Widow Troop got its name from its notorious cannibalism.. The female spider of this species eats the male after mating, and can feed on similar arthropods and even her own brood of spiderlings.

But some scientists refute these facts by the fact that such observations are carried out in laboratory conditions, where very often spiders have no choice but to eat their loved ones. And the male will not be able to avoid such a fate, because he has nowhere to run. But in the wild, in the natural environment, their behavior is significantly different.

Before mating, the male black widow courtes his lady for a long time and performs mating dances. Some scientists explain this flirting by the fact that sudden aggressive actions can provoke the spider to attack. In this case, the groom risks becoming dinner, and not the father of offspring.

Due to such cannibalistic incidents, the lifespan of spiders is short. In addition, karakurt (black widow) is a favorite treat for many birds and mantises. Usually the bright color helps its owner, warning everyone about poisonous properties body. But in this case, the female karakurt is not saved by her red spot on her abdomen.

The life cycle of spiders most often does not exceed a year, but there are also long-livers that reach three years. Among the latter one cannot find males, in natural environment habitat, their life is much shorter than that of females of this species. Only in artificial conditions can they live for a long time, without ever mating.

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How to determine the habitat of karakurt (video)

Characteristics and description

In fact, the black widow spider is not aggressive. Karakurts bite people not out of a desire to kill or eat, but only for the sake of protection when a person poses a threat. Even an accidental intrusion into the territory of a karakurt provokes an attack by a spider.

A healthy adult may not be afraid of karakurt poison. Fatal consequences from a bite can only occur in sick people, children and the elderly. But be that as it may, an antidote is necessary for every victim. The black widow spider's venom, which enters the bloodstream, can lead to further mental problems. nervous system and muscles.

The female black widow has stronger venom than the male. The spider is much larger than its mate, has a red or orange hourglass mark on its abdomen and shiny dark organs. The male is paler, with red or pink spots on the back. These karakurts have 4 pairs of legs approximately 12 mm long, and the body reaches 40 mm in females and approximately 20-25 mm in males.

The spider's web is stronger than silk, and to make it convenient to pull thin threads over prey, these spiders have curved bristles on the back pair of legs. Karakurt weaves thick fabrics, rather than delicate lace, to catch grasshoppers, various insects and other spiders.

Gallery: black widow (43 photos)

Unusual pet

Many people do not know what a black widow spider looks like and confuse the poisonous one with its relatives. There are a lot on Earth dangerous spiders, similar to a black widow, each of them has its own habits and characteristics. In the vastness of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine, the false black widow is found.

For example, white karakurt, which is most often found in steppe areas, is one of the subspecies of the black widow. This spider is not so poisonous; its bite will never lead to fatal consequences. But that doesn't mean it's safe to try his fangs.

And it has the same poisonous properties.

Black widow spider - distributed throughout the United States, with the exception of Alaska; There are especially many of these spiders in the southeast. The body length is up to 1 cm, the leg span is up to 5 cm. This spider is shiny, black, with two red hourglass-shaped marks on the ventral surface of the abdomen, the abdomen is teardrop-like, convex, thick. The female is a very poisonous spider, males are less common and are almost harmless. Males have four pairs of red dots located along the sides of the abdomen. After mating, the female devours the male, hence the name "black widow" - although this is found in most spiders and even praying mantises.

The black widow spins its web in the dark corners of sheds, barns, garages and under stones, boards, and pipes stacked for repairs. Most bites occur in the summer and early fall and occur when people destroy a spider's web or try to catch a spider.

The bite of a female spider is poisonous, accompanied by local pain, swelling, nausea, difficulty breathing and is sometimes fatal. At least three other black widow species are also poisonous to humans: the brown or gray widow spider; red widow spider, with sparse red and yellow markings; and the northern widow spider. Black widow spiders produce a neurotoxin that causes severe pain, muscle cramps and even paralysis in humans. The poison is more dangerous for children than for adults. Their bites are very dangerous, although antidotes have long been created that allow you to recover from the poison in a few days - because it takes time to be delivered to the hospital. But neurotoxins paralyze insects so quickly that the spider often starts eating while the victim is still alive. Most black widow species prefer flight to attack. A disturbed spider often pretends to be dead, with its legs tucked in, and runs only if they try to catch it or it seems to it that the danger has passed; it is not aggressive in itself and attacks people in case of its defense.

The venom of black widows is extremely toxic: they are considered one of the most dangerous spiders in the world.

Notes

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Black Widow! Spiders with this name are known to many for their deadly dangerous bites. But not every spider is dangerous to humans. Females stand out for their aggressiveness black widow. They are dangerous not only for humans, but especially for males of this species. Females are several times larger in size than males, who are calmer and rarely attack people.

The homeland of this type of spider is North America. But the spiders took root on ships and thus found their way to Australia and Oceania, where they became acclimatized and thrive.

The species of black widow spider should not be confused with the genus of the same name. These are different ranks in biological classification. This genus of spiders includes 31 species that live on all continents of the Earth. Not all representatives of this genus are dangerous to humans. In the south of Russia and Ukraine lives a representative of the genus - the karakurt spider, whose bite is very poisonous and can cause death.

Distinctive features of the black widow's appearance

The female spider is considered the most aggressive. A photo of a black widow spider will show the full beauty of the females. Its color is jet black with glitter and a red infinity symbol on its belly. at a young age. Adults are completely black. The body of the spider does not exceed 1 cm in diameter, while overall size female spiders are about 6 cm. There are 4 thin tenacious legs on each side of the body.

Aggression in many cases is not justified, so when meeting it it is better not to provoke it, otherwise a bite cannot be avoided. Black widows do not attack for nothing; they often protect their offspring. When meeting a spider, it is better to simply walk around it. In the event of a bite when poison enters the human body, the victim will require emergency medical care, without which death is not excluded.

Males, unlike females, are calmer and are not famous for attacks on people. They are several times smaller in size than females with a grayish-brown body color. On the back of males there is an ornament of horizontal and vertical white stripes.

Small spiders, just born, have a pale yellow or white color. Age-related changes in spiders are marked by a change in color according to gender.

Danger of the black widow

Black widow spider: close-up photo.

For children and older people, bites almost always lead to death, regardless of the specialized care provided. Not even every adult healthy body able to cope with symptoms after a bite:

• cramps in the limbs;
• fever;
• sweating;
• headache;
• acute pain in the abdominal cavity, often reminiscent of exacerbation of pancreatitis and ulcer disease;
• failure of breathing;
• arrhythmia leading to heart failure.

All these symptoms appear as the poison spreads throughout the body. Fatal poisoning lasts 15-60 minutes. ultimately leading to death.

Rendering medical care will not give a quick and complete recovery. First aid provides relief from symptoms within a few hours with their resumption in full. Gradual introduction of vaccines and medical supplies allow you to return to normal life in 1-1.5 weeks. Minor health problems observed before a spider bite may become worse and become chronic, and may also appear chronic diseases nervous and cardiovascular systems.

Photo of a black widow

Black widow spider with prey.

The black widow spider caught a small lizard.

The black widow spider caught a small snake.

Black widow spider: adult female.

Black widow spider: adult female with prey.

Secrets of the black widow

This type of spider got its name due to ill-treatment females with males. They simply eat them after mating, and only a few males manage to avoid the fate of becoming lunch. Females spend most of their time sitting on the web with their growing offspring and waiting for easy prey or a male, although they apparently do not distinguish prey well from males of their species. So, the female black widows wait on their web, while the males move around in search of their beloved for mating.

The approach of a male to a web with a female occurs with extreme caution. The initial sniffing of the edge of the web and observation of the behavior of the hostess of the “lace” makes it clear whether she is ready for mating or not. Readiness to accept a male for mating is marked by the female creating certain vibrations distributed throughout the web.

But the name itself comes from the behavior of a hungry female, who can suddenly attack her partner and then eat him, without even waiting for mating. Such actions are also observed after fertilization, which caused hunger in the female. We can say that the color of the black widow emphasizes main role females

Having eaten, the female begins to weave a cocoon in which she lays eggs. She hides this cocoon in the shade, for example under a stone or a snag, or in a hole. The female is very aggressive in protecting her young and many bites occur due to people approaching the cocoon.

Black widow spider with cocoons and cubs.

Spiderlings usually hatch from eggs after three weeks. But mom doesn't feed them. They eat each other. Thus, only the strongest and most cruel children are selected from the cocoon. No more than 12 of these thugs survive in one clutch.

With age, the poisonousness of the black widow increases.