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Yep, tons of spider in Missouri... I used to be somewhat freaked out about brown recluse spiders as a child but now as an adult I could care less. There is one

Yep, tons of spider in Missouri... I used to be somewhat freaked out about brown recluse spiders as a child but now as an adult I could care less. There is one with a web setup in my basement that I walk by every day, I just let it be since there is a pile of dead bugs under the web. I remember one kid in high school got bit and had a nasty necrotized spot on his ankle, other than that I have only heard of a few people who have been bit. As far as black widows go, I have only seen/caught a couple of them and never heard of anyone being bit by one.

jermaustin1 8y ago
I've had 2 bites from the brown recluses. The first was on my upper lip, sent me to the hospital, before the necrosis it swelled up closing off my mouth and nose so I couldn't breath. The "core" was extracted and I was left with minimal scarring, but I keep a mustache to cover it. The second bite was on my big toe. Woke up one morning with my toe swollen to the size of a small orange. When I went to the hospital for that one, some rotting had already started. My 350 pound father and two nurses held my leg down as the doctor cut into it. They were no match, I knocked them all to the ground when I felt the blade. I now have a dime-sized spot on my big toe. I still don't fear them, and recognize the good they do. I try to avoid spiders now though ;).
- okreallywtf 8y ago
  How do you know that it was a brown recluse? I'm not disputing, I'm just wondering if it was assumed based on the injury or if you were able to find the actual spider.
  - jermaustin1 8y ago
    Just going off what the doctors told me. A friend later told me that MRSA sometimes mimics the same symptoms, but both occurred during summer, and not around other kids or in a hospital setting.
    - BeetleB 8y ago
      Funny. 10 years ago, I lived at the northern edge of the brown recluse zone. I saw many spiders in my apartment building that looked like them - can't say for sure. Then one day I developed sudden swelling on my thigh. It went from nothing to fairly swollen in about 2 hours. I went to the doctor and he said "Could be a spider bite, or could be a staph infection. No way to know - just take these antibiotics and pray." Then earlier this year it happened again - at a similar spot. Doctor said the same thing. No brown recluses in this area, but he said it could be a different spider.
    - gmiller123456 8y ago
      Unfortunately doctors tend to over diagnose a lot of things as brown recluse bites[1]. So, unless he specifically tested for it, there's a really good chance it wasn't a brown recluse bite. [1]http://spiders.ucr.edu/necrotic.html http://spiders.ucr.edu/necrotic.html
mikestew 8y ago
As far as black widows go, I have only seen/caught a couple of them and never heard of anyone being bit by one. You need to get a bit east, say, North Carolina. You'll want to look carefully when pulling up those old pieces of wood out by the shed. Wear gloves.
- partiallypro 8y ago
  I think Black Widows are more common in the American South West than anywhere else. I'm in Tennessee and brown recluse spiders are very common, but I've only ever seen one black widow, ever. Black Widows are less aggressive afiak and are usually outdoors. Brown recluse love cardboard boxes and storage areas, indoors...so their bite is more common.
  - mikestew 8y ago
    I'm in Tennessee and brown recluse spiders are very common, but I've only ever seen one black widow, ever. Could be just NC, too, dunno. It's the only place I've seen black widows, and though not common, I saw more than a few. OTOH, I was surprised to find out NC has scorpions, too, so who knows what goes on up in those mountains. :-)
  - Matticus_Rex 8y ago
    NC native here -- I've found black widows in nearly every apartment and house I've lived in, which is saying something. Only one of those locations was outside a city.
    - tibbon 8y ago
      Grew up in Greensboro, NC. Tons of black widows in most sheds/barns, etc. I always thought there were brown recluses around too - but I guess this research is saying they aren't in NC?
      - Matticus_Rex 8y ago
        I've never seen one. I've seen dozens of spiders that people said were brown recluses, and they never were.

jermaustin1 8y ago

I've had 2 bites from the brown recluses. The first was on my upper lip, sent me to the hospital, before the necrosis it swelled up closing off my mouth and nose so I couldn't breath. The "core" was extracted and I was left with minimal scarring, but I keep a mustache to cover it. The second bite was on my big toe. Woke up one morning with my toe swollen to the size of a small orange. When I went to the hospital for that one, some rotting had already started. My 350 pound father and two nurses held my leg down as the doctor cut into it. They were no match, I knocked them all to the ground when I felt the blade. I now have a dime-sized spot on my big toe. I still don't fear them, and recognize the good they do. I try to avoid spiders now though ;).

okreallywtf 8y ago
How do you know that it was a brown recluse? I'm not disputing, I'm just wondering if it was assumed based on the injury or if you were able to find the actual spider.
- jermaustin1 8y ago
  Just going off what the doctors told me. A friend later told me that MRSA sometimes mimics the same symptoms, but both occurred during summer, and not around other kids or in a hospital setting.
  - BeetleB 8y ago
    Funny. 10 years ago, I lived at the northern edge of the brown recluse zone. I saw many spiders in my apartment building that looked like them - can't say for sure. Then one day I developed sudden swelling on my thigh. It went from nothing to fairly swollen in about 2 hours. I went to the doctor and he said "Could be a spider bite, or could be a staph infection. No way to know - just take these antibiotics and pray." Then earlier this year it happened again - at a similar spot. Doctor said the same thing. No brown recluses in this area, but he said it could be a different spider.
  - gmiller123456 8y ago
    Unfortunately doctors tend to over diagnose a lot of things as brown recluse bites[1]. So, unless he specifically tested for it, there's a really good chance it wasn't a brown recluse bite. [1]http://spiders.ucr.edu/necrotic.html http://spiders.ucr.edu/necrotic.html

mikestew 8y ago

As far as black widows go, I have only seen/caught a couple of them and never heard of anyone being bit by one. You need to get a bit east, say, North Carolina. You'll want to look carefully when pulling up those old pieces of wood out by the shed. Wear gloves.

partiallypro 8y ago
I think Black Widows are more common in the American South West than anywhere else. I'm in Tennessee and brown recluse spiders are very common, but I've only ever seen one black widow, ever. Black Widows are less aggressive afiak and are usually outdoors. Brown recluse love cardboard boxes and storage areas, indoors...so their bite is more common.
- mikestew 8y ago
  I'm in Tennessee and brown recluse spiders are very common, but I've only ever seen one black widow, ever. Could be just NC, too, dunno. It's the only place I've seen black widows, and though not common, I saw more than a few. OTOH, I was surprised to find out NC has scorpions, too, so who knows what goes on up in those mountains. :-)
- Matticus_Rex 8y ago
  NC native here -- I've found black widows in nearly every apartment and house I've lived in, which is saying something. Only one of those locations was outside a city.
  - tibbon 8y ago
    Grew up in Greensboro, NC. Tons of black widows in most sheds/barns, etc. I always thought there were brown recluses around too - but I guess this research is saying they aren't in NC?
    - Matticus_Rex 8y ago
      I've never seen one. I've seen dozens of spiders that people said were brown recluses, and they never were.