Where is brown recluse found

In infested garages, attics, basements and crawl spaces, the spiders, egg sacs, and distinctive shed skins are often found along joists, sills and rafters, as well as under rolled insulation.

In living areas, they sometimes inhabit crevices behind and beneath beds and furniture, closets, clothing, shoes, and stored items. When sorting through boxes or materials, wear long sleeves and gloves to avoid being bitten. Brown recluse spiders also live above suspended ceilings, behind baseboards and woodwork, and within ducts and registers.

Outdoors the spiders may be found in barns, sheds, woodpiles, and under anything laying on the ground. They also commonly reside behind shutters. Migration indoors can be reduced by moving firewood, building materials, and debris away from foundations.

Sealing cracks and holes in a building's exterior can further help to keep these, and other pests, outdoors. Some of the more common entry points for brown recluse spiders include gaps under doors, vents and utility penetrations, beneath the bottommost edge of siding, and where eaves and soffits meet the sides of buildings.

Outdoor populations of brown recluse spiders are less common in the northern portions of its range. Use of Glue Traps — An excellent way to survey for brown recluse is to install flat, sticky cards known as glue traps. Often used to capture mice and cockroaches, the traps can be purchased online or at grocery, hardware or farm supply stores. The best glue traps for capturing the spiders are flat, like thin pieces of sticky cardboard without a raised perimeter edge.

The more glue traps used the better — dozens placed throughout a home will reveal areas where spiders are most abundant. Traps should be placed in corners and along baseboards and wall-floor junctures, especially behind furniture and clutter since spiders tend to travel in these areas.

Besides being useful for detection, glue traps can capture and kill large numbers of spiders, especially the males, which are more likely to wander into places where people are accidentally bitten. Ongoing eradication efforts can be judged by the number of new spiders caught in traps. Glue traps should be installed before applying insecticides since some products will cause spiders to become active and wander into traps.

Use of Insecticides — Brown recluse spider elimination will often require use of insecticides. Some spiders will not be caught in glue traps, especially the adult females, which stay hidden more so than male spiders.

Insecticides should be applied into cracks and other areas where spiders are likely to be hiding, attempting to contact directly as many as possible. Liquid, aerosol, and dust formulations may be employed. Dust insecticides are particularly effective for treating cracks along baseboards, sills, joists and rafters in basements, crawl spaces, and attics.

Dusts also work well when treating under insulation, within voids of concrete block foundations, and behind light switch and outlet plates to contact spiders traveling along wires from attics. Apply the dust as a fine deposit barely visible to the naked eye. Spiders and other pests tend to avoid powdery accumulations much as we would avoid walking through a snowdrift. Insecticides can also be sprayed into harborages and places where spiders tend to travel.

Effective ingredients e. The sprays can also be applied outdoors behind shutters, the bottommost edge of siding, along foundations, etc. For more information on brown recluse spiders, or to find a local pest professional, visit www. Stink bugs are an invasive species that release a smelly odor when crushed.

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Advanced Search International Search. The Truth about Brown Recluse Spiders When most people think of spiders that can pose a threat to humans, they probably think of the black widow , which is infamous for its red hourglass marking and painful bites. Understanding the Threat of Brown Recluse Spiders Brown recluse spiders are not aggressive by nature, and typically run for cover when disturbed. Preventing Brown Recluse Spiders So what can you do to prevent brown recluse spiders from taking up residence in your home?

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Find a Branch Our local technicians are the pest experts in your area. Members of this group have violin-shaped markings on the top of their cephalothorax fused head and thorax and may be informally referred to as fiddleback or violin spiders, according to The Ohio State University Extension Entomology Department.

The brown recluse's violin marking can vary in intensity depending on the age of the spider, with mature spiders typically having dark violin shapes, according to The Ohio State University. The violin shape points toward the spider's bulbous abdomen. The violin shape is easy to misinterpret, so it is best to look at the eyes when determining if a spider is a brown recluse. The recluse's eyes are one of its most distinctive physical characteristics.

Other types of spiders have eight eyes arranged in rows of four. Recluses, however, have six equal-size eyes arranged in three pairs, called dyads, in a semicircle around the front of the cephalothorax. Another distinguishing characteristic of the brown recluse spider is its uniformly colored abdomen though the shade of brown varies from spider to spider covered in fine hairs, which give it a velvety appearance. Their long, thin legs are also covered in fine hairs.

According to the Integrated Pest Management Program at The University of California, Berkeley , the scientific name Loxosceles means "slanted legs," and refers to the fact that recluse spiders hold their legs in a slanting position when at rest.

Bills also noted that the brown recluse's legs do not have spines, only fine hairs.