They are found in the central Midwestern states from southern Illinois south to the Gulf Coast.
They live on the ground under rocks and in the bark of trees. They also live in homes, barns, basements and garages. They like dark places.
They are tan to brown with a dark violin-shaped patch on the back of their front section (cephalothorax). They are covered with fine hairs. They have 2 body parts – a cephalothorax and an abdomen and including their 8 legs can just fit on a quarter. They only have 6 eyes (3 pairs).
They make a thick, messy web close to the ground. They will bite if bothered and have a very poisonous bite. Their poison can make the skin around the bite become very infected.
They eat insects, liking dead insects especially.
The female lays about 50 eggs in a white egg sac in the spring which she attaches to a wall or rock. The babies (spiderlings) hatch out of the egg sac and go through several molts before becoming an adult, in about a year.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Arachnida
Order: Araneae
Suborder: Neocribellatae
Family: Loxoscelidae
Genus: Loxosceles
Species: L. reclusa
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Amsel, Sheri. "Spider (Brown Recluse) " Exploring Nature Educational Resource ©2005-2024. March 28, 2024
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