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Have you heard the phrase: she took it to the next level? This statement conveys the idea of increasing intensity, complexity, improvement, or pushing the boundaries. Now, let us apply that thought to spiders. Most people do not want to be around spiders. Although they are a necessary component of our ecosystem, we want them to remain outside. While we do not like it when common household spiders invade our Roseville homes, we certainly do not need black widow spiders lurking in our houses. When black widow spiders infest our homes, that is a next-level spider problem.
If you suspect black widow spiders are inside your house, you need spider control near you from Neighborly Pest Management. For over 45 years, our family-owned and operated company has removed spiders from Roseville homes. You do not need someone from a national pest control franchise to tackle your pest problems when a local, experienced company understands the pest issues in our community. As a business with an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau, you can rest assured that we have many satisfied customers.
You are probably reading this article because you have seen a spider(s) in your Roseville home that you suspect are black widows. Please continue reading to get the information you need to confirm or reject your suspicion, and if black widows are in your house, learn what you need to do next.
Identifying A Black Widow Spider
So that you can get a good understanding of what is lurking in your home, we will begin with a general definition and move to the specifics. Spiders are not insects but are arachnids. Although both are in the same Phylum (anthropoda), they are in different scientific classes (Arachnida and Insecta). What are those differences? Well, insects have six jointed legs, but spiders have eight. Also, insects have a three-part body (head, thorax, and abdomen), but arachnids have a two-part body (cephalothorax and opisthosoma). Insects have two antennae and may have stingers and wings, but spiders have none of these appendages; spiders have spinnerets, which insects do not possess. In summary, spiders have eight legs, a two-part body, spinnerets, and multiple eyes, usually in two or three rows. Now that we know general spider features, we will examine black widows.
Black widow spiders have a shiny black 1 1/2 to 1 3/8 inch body. In addition to their glossy appearance, they have two reddish-orange triangles that merge to form an hourglass appearance on the underside of their abdomen (opisthosoma). Another way you may identify these spiders is by the location of their nests.
Whereas most of us are familiar with spider webs in the upper corners of doors and windows, black widow spiders spin irregular webs at ground level, usually less than one foot in diameter. So, if you walk into a spider web as you enter through a door, it is not a black widow web; it is likely from a house spider. Furthermore, if the web is large and circular, it was not created by a black widow but is probably the work of an orb weaver spider. Although they can survive in cooler temperatures, black widows prefer warm, dry places to construct their habitats. When they invade a home, they migrate to dimly lit and cluttered areas in garages, basements, or crawl spaces.
Many spider species create webs in the upper corners of rooms, doorways, or windows where good airflow exists to capture flying insects; however, black widows do not use their webs as snares; instead, they use them as retreats. During the day, black widows hang upside down in the web to rest; at night, they leave the web and hunt their prey by chasing them down.
While it is understandable why humans fear black widows, they are not aggressive toward people. A bite from a black widow is rare, but they will attack in self-defense or to protect egg sacs in their webs. A bite may occur when a person sticks an unprotected hand into a dark corner or in an opening near the ground where a black widow resides.
The reputation of black widow spiders is partly a myth. Because they are called widow spiders, some assume their bite is deadly, yet there are no records of anyone dying in the United States from a black widow bite in over a decade. They are widows because, in some instances, the females kill the males after mating; however, this does not always occur. While their bites are not deadly per se, they do have consequences.
A bite from a black widow (usually only the female bites) will cause increasing blood pressure, nausea, and sweating. Pain at the wound site is immediate and increases in intensity for the next one to three hours and may reside for one to three days afterward. Although a black widow bite is seldom fatal, seek immediate medical attention because you do not know how intensely your body will react.
Even if you see spiders that look like black widows but aren't sure, you need help from Neighborly Pest Management. On average, our employees work with us for over ten years, which means the technician who comes to your home has experience in pest control and knows how to resolve your black widow spider issue.
Why A Black Widow Spider Would Be In Your Home
While it may be an unpleasant thought, black widow spiders likely live around your house. Like most spider species, they prefer to live underneath stones, firewood piles, and hollow tree stumps where they have protection from the elements. Black widow spiders also find shelter in barns, sheds, henhouses, meter boxes, and other human-made structures. Although they have a penchant for structures, the question is: why do black widows enter homes? It is one thing to live in a barn or shed, but another to invade a house.
Two reasons spiders or insects infest a home: food and water. Because insects are the primary food source for black widows, they generally enter a home following insects. For example, if cockroaches invade your home (another common pest problem in Roseville), you may soon notice black widows. If you wonder what black widow spiders eat, it is cockroaches, ants, crickets, beetles, scorpions, and other spiders.
Insects enter your Roseville home because they detect food and water sources. Nutritional enticements include grease, crumbs, open garbage cans, pet food, poorly stored products, etc. Insects and spiders also enter if they need water. When outdoor conditions are dry, leaking pipes, poor ventilation, and high humidity in homes attract insects, which attract spiders.
While spiders follow their food sources into their home, they enter when they need shelter. Black widow spiders can tolerate cooler outdoor temperatures, but when conditions get too cold, they seek the warmth of a home (along with insects).
Black widows are some of the most common spiders in Northern California, and when they invade your home, you need Neighborly Pest Management. Our trained service technicians will identify attractants when we inspect your property. If, in addition to a black widow infestation, we determine you have an insect problem, we can resolve both issues.
Professional Pest Control: Safely Eliminate Black Widow Spiders
To avoid a painful bite from a black widow, partner with Neighborly Pest Management. We will dispatch a trained, experienced service technician to inspect your home for entry points, attractants, black widow hot spots and to identify the offending pest. We will review our findings with you and present a recommended strategy using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) solutions to eliminate the black widow spiders in your Roseville home.
This EPA-endorsed method requires a precisely measured use of environmentally sensitive products (we also have organic options) that target hot spots to eliminate the current population and disrupt their life cycle, discouraging a future re-infestation. IPM also necessitates we address attractants with homeowners to deter future pest problems. Furthermore, our pest control visits include de-webbing the exterior, which will discourage future infestations. Our pest control products not only stop spiders, but they are also effective against a wide range of insects and California spiders. Thus, we resolve your black widow problem and stop any additional invaders.
How To Prevent Future Dangerous Spider Problems
We recommend these preventative steps to keep black widow spiders out of your Roseville home:
- Repair leaking plumbing fixtures
- Install door sweeps under exterior doors
- Repair holes in the window and door screen.
- Store firewood piles 20 feet from the house and elevate them
- Seal cracks in the foundation, roofline, and around frames
- Reduce clutter in the garage, basement, and crawl space
These tips will help prevent spiders in the home and deter insects from entering from the outside. Furthermore, maintaining a clean and dry interior and exterior will discourage insects and spiders from living on the property and infesting the house.
Neighborly Pest Management is the company for local spider control in Roseville. Contact us today to learn more about our bi-monthly pest control programs and to request a free quote. Neighborly Pest Management is "Your Best Defense Against Unwanted Pests."
