Hobbies And Interests
Instructions
Look for the telltale brown fiddle-shaped mark in the middle of this spider's back. The shape is so distinct that it is often called a fiddle-back spider. You can also identify this type of spider by its location. They hide and nest in small, dark places like closets, boxes, trunks and storage spaces. They are not very common, but are found in the state occasionally.
Take a look at the underside of the spider. If it is a black or brown and carries a small red or orange glob of color on its underside, then it is a black widow. Females of the species are a shiny black in color and males are a dull brown. They are found in West Virginia in dark, moist area like piles of wood and crawl spaces. They are nocturnal and the females bit is poisonous.
Look for an elongated, brown body with dark spots on the back. These are cobweb weaver spiders, and although they are not poisonous, their bites are painful. They can also be a nuisance around the house. You can find them in the webs they build in sheltered corners and other places inside and out. They will often build hiding places in the web to sleep during the day and hang from the middle of the web at night.
Check the size of the spider. If it is between 3 and 10 mm and slick brown in color, it is most likely a sheet weaver spider. There is a dark pattern on the abdomen. The abdomen is most often longer than it is wide in this species.
Identify the antmimic spider by its amazing similarity to an ant. It has 8 legs like a spider should, but looks like a 6-legged ant. Look for two black spots on its head that resemble an ant's antennae. Looking like an un-tasty ant helps them not be eaten by predators.