LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Black Widow: Black Widow Spider
built 179 days ago
Of all spiders, the Black Widow is the most feared. The female's venom is especially poisonous to people. Despite its reputation, this spider often attempts to escape rather than bite, unless it is guarding an egg mass or if it is cornered and pressed. The male black widow will not bite you. After mating, the female sometimes eats the male (remember, she only has to mate once in her life), earning the name "widow." During the period shortly following mating and laying of eggs, the female black widow can be a little cranky and hungry. After this period (if he lives through it!) the male lives quite comfortably, eating prey captured by the female.
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The Black Widow Spider is one of the most famous and feared spiders of North America. It is definitely feared by this unfortunate grasshopper that got caught in the spider's web. The black widow spider is careful not to get injured by the struggling grasshopper while it wraps the insect in more spider silk to keep it from moving. This spider will spend 5-10 minutes wrapping up its prey before she settles in for a liesurely meal.
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[T]he male Black Widow spider has yellow and red bands with spots on their back. When males are newly hatched they are a white, sometimes with a yellowish tint. Newly hatched Black Widows are harmless and resemble the males more in appearance. The Black Widows do spin webs... their webs contain no specific patterns or shapes but their silk is stronger than any other spider. Also, the female spider will rarely leave the web.
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Immature Black Widows have the same shape as the mature "Widow" but with dramatic color markings. An immature Widow, although much smaller that an adult, can still cause a painful and dangerous bite. As you can see, the characteristic hourglass marking is yellowish, not red, in this young female spider. After mating, the female spider takes on the sinister black with red hourglass coloration.
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Black Widow spiders are not usually deadly, especially to adults, because they inject only a small amount of venom. Bites can range from mild to quite painful; anyone bitten should seek medical attention. An attempt should be made to catch the spider for identification.
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The Black Widow spider (Latrodectus) is represented by five species in North America north of Mexico. Two of these species, the brown widow (L. geostricus) and the red-legged or red widow (L. bishopi), are restricted to a southern distribution. The red widow appears to be found only in southern Florida. The remaining black widow species were historically considered to be only one species but are now recognized as three distinct species.
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Black Widow Spider