Fun Brown Recluse Spider Facts For Kids

Brown recluse spiders (Loxosceles reclusa) are one of the most common species that is found throughout Central and South America. They are called recluse for the reason that they do not like playing with others that means they live in secluded places that are dark and dingy.

These spiders are a favorite amongst spider owners but aren't generally preferred pets for normal pet owners. Their venom can be dangerous to humans as well as other animals.

The venom of brown recluse spiders has also been known to cause organ failures and death at times in the past. If you want to read more about different insects, you may also check out yellow sac spider facts and wolf spider facts.

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Brown Recluse Spider Interesting Facts

What type of animal is a brown recluse spider?

A brown recluse spider (Loxosceles reclusa), as its name gives away, is amongst the poisonous species of spider that is found over a range of Central and South America.

What class of animal does a brown recluse spider belong to?

They are counted amongst the class of Arachnid and are known to lay eggs.

How many brown recluse spiders are there in the world?

It is practically impossible to give an estimate of the number of brown recluse spiders that are found around the world. But they have been put under the category of not extinct and least concern by different authorities which shows no concern regarding them being extinct in near future.

Where does a brown recluse spider live?

Brown recluse spiders are generally found in the woods and also in houses. They are found in various different habitats, including forests, deserts, and especially your house. They prefer dark, shady areas where they can easily hide and hunt for food.

What is a brown recluse spider's habitat?

Brown recluse spiders are some of the most abundant species that are found throughout areas of Central and South America. They are found all over Nebraska, extending to Ohio and along with South America from Texas to Florida in the United States.

They are very widely found in the wooded areas and all the dark, shady corners of your house including places like the garage and back of the garden that is usually deserted.

Who do brown recluse spiders live with?

Brown recluse spiders, as their name suggests, try to live away in dark, dingy places. They prefer scavenger hunt and try to prey on dead insects rather than hunting their own. But they are also known to live in groups or clusters of individual members at some places.

How long does a brown recluse spider live?

The brown recluse spiders are known to live only up to one to two years and are also known to play dead when they are threatened. Brown recluse bite is not possible unless there is contact with their skin.

How do they reproduce?

Brown recluse spiders are known to reproduce by laying eggs. Female spiders may create a number of egg sacs.

Each brown recluse spider egg sac is capable of holding around three hundred eggs at once. The eggs are laid between May to July, and an average of around 50 eggs are laid at once. The eggs and babies grow slowly, and the development from eggs takes around the time period of a year.

What is their conservation status?

Brown recluse spiders have been placed under the category of not extinct by experts. They are not considered to be near extinct and it is predicted this won't happen in the near future either.

Brown Recluse Spider Fun Facts

What do brown recluse spiders look like?

Brown recluse spiders have distinct markings on their dorsal with a shade of black. They have six eyes arranged in three pairs.

As their neck has violin-shaped marking, they are also known as a dark brown fiddler or violin spiders. The brown recluse spider striped legs are entirely unheard of as this species does not have any stripes on the legs. Depending on the age, the dark violin marking can vary significantly in terms of intensity.

The mature spiders will have an extremely dark violin shape as compared to young ones. The violin shape is pointing towards the abdomen of the spider.

How cute are they?

These creatures are very shy and cute and are one of the top choices among experienced spider owners. They rarely bite and are known to show non-aggressive behavior only until not threatened. But after being bitten, one does require brown recluse spider bite treatment. Their six eyes arranged in three pairs make them unique from other spiders.

How do they communicate?

The information is insufficient regarding how these violin spiders communicate with one another, but as their name suggests, they are not very social and try to live alone.

How big is a brown recluse spider?

A brown recluse spider can grow up to a range of around 0.75-1 in long, although small compared to other species of spider. They are almost five times the size of small insects and moths.

How fast can a brown recluse spider move?

So every one of us might have heard of brown recluse spiders moving really fast and having great eyesight. Well, it’s all true. They are really fast and are even faster when they are chasing their prey or moving away from light and human contact.

How much does a brown recluse spider weigh?

They are very small spiders that are known to be found in dark, dingy places and weigh around 0.001 lb on average, and can have varied weights according to their age.  

What are their male and female names of the species?

There are no specific names given to the male and female species of brown recluse spiders. They are generally regarded as male brown recluse spider and female brown recluse spider.

It is difficult to differentiate between male and female species, but it can be done once they have molted several times. They have a set of appendages on their face called the pedipalps, which are much larger in males than females and serve as the sex organ for males.

What would you call a baby brown recluse spider?

There is no special or specific name given to the young ones of brown recluse spiders. They are commonly regarded as baby brown recluse spiders or infant brown recluse spiders. They are comparatively small, and their venom is almost not harmful.

What do they eat?

It is well known that brown recluse spiders have a weird habit of chasing down their prey rather than catching prey in their webs, which is rarely seen among other species of spiders. They prefer eating soft-bodied insects including flies, cockroaches, moths, and even crickets.

It might be shocking to hear, but they are, also, known to eat one another as well, along with preying on other species of spider.

They are considered scavengers and use their venom to subdue their prey. Interestingly, they are attracted by dead and decaying insects as they are believed to prey on these dead insects as well.

Are they poisonous?

These reclusive brown spiders are known to be poisonous, whose venom causes severe harm and injury to humans as well as other animals. They are also regarded as nocturnal hunters who like to chase around their prey rather than trying to catch them in their protein-based webs to later subdue them by injecting this poisonous venom into their bodies.

Brown recluse spider bites are very dangerous for humans. Brown recluse bites occur only if humans touch its skin.

Brown recluse bites require initial medical aid that involves cleaning the wound, applying antiseptic cream, applying ice to reduce swelling, and taking pain medicine. The brown recluse bite manifests different symptoms.

Brown recluse spider bite symptoms include reddened skin, ulcer, intense pain and swelling. Anyone who is suffering from brown recluse bites, should be rushed to an emergency room for immediate medical attention.

Would they make a good pet?

Brown recluse spiders are suitable for experienced spider owners while it is not a good pet for newcomers. Although brown recluses are really gentle and rarely bite humans, they can cause some serious damage.

Brown recluse spider bite venom is dangerous both to you as well as your pets, and the larger quantities of brown recluse spider venom can cause organ damage and even death. And if you have a pet dog and cat, try considering another pet companion as they can be really toxic for your other pets.

Did you know...

Brown recluses are known to live around and survive for months without any food or water just like most other species of spider. Spiders, like this species, are always likely to be found around their native range only.

Unlike other spiders, they do form their webs in different places and do not use them to catch prey, rather they have a liking towards chasing their prey and then injecting venom in their body. They are attracted to dead creatures and insects too that they like to feed on.

These species of spiders are usually active during March to October and are known to be hidden during other times.

When you undertake a comparison of brown recluse spider vs wolf spider, it can be hard to differentiat them, as both are brown in color. But you must note that there are no stripes on the legs of brown recluse, wolf spider legs on the other hand have leg band markings. They are uniformly colored all over their body.

How does a brown recluse spider catch its prey?

So, here is another interesting fact about this brown recluse spider which is that they do not form webs to catch their prey. Unlike normal spiders, brown recluses are known to be nocturnal creatures or hunters that love to chase their prey.

Once brown recluses get hold of their prey, they use their fangs to inject poisonous venom into their body to subdue them.

Where do brown recluse spiders make their webs?

Brown recluse spiders make their web out of protein-based silks that are released from their organs called spinnerets. Their webs are off-white in color.

Brown recluses are known to form their webs in different places that are dark, dry, and deserted which are entirely undisturbed.

Brown recluse spiders form their webs both indoors in basements, cardboard boxes, storage closets, laundry left on the floor, shoes, and outdoors in woodpiles, garages, and sheds. If you want to get rid of these spiders then you can opt for pest control or use sticky spider traps.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other arthropods including Brazilian wandering spider, or orb-weaver spider spider.

You can even occupy yourself at home by drawing one on our Brown recluse spider coloring pages.