That’s definitely a recluse. I had thousands of them under my old house in New Orleans. The thing about them is that if you see one of them, there are easy another thousand or more that you don’t see very close by.
I was bitten by on my right arm, however my reaction to the venom, which is actually a digestive enzyme, was much less severe. Only a small wound opened as a result, but it was still quite alarming.
From what I have understood from my own readings is that the venom never actually leaves the body, and it does substantial damage to the liver as a result.
Is that the same as the brown recluse spider?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hobo_spider
“Distribution in North America in green
(native European distribution not shown)”
Hmmmm....
Police and veterinary authorities in the Vaucluse region sought to play down the incident, saying there was no conclusive proof that the wound had been caused by a spider, and that it was releasing no health warnings.
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Those are some wicked spiders. I know a guy who nearly lost his hand from a bite when he was working in his basement and reached under some insulation. One crawled into his glove and bit him on the back of the hand. At first he wasn’t worried about it because he didn’t see the spider, he just knew he got bit by something. By the end of the day the back of his hand was deep blue and he had red streaks running up his arm. He went to the hospital and they knew what it was right away. He lost most of the skin and muscle from the back of his hand and had to stay in the hospital for two weeks. They said he probably would have lost his hand if he hadn’t went to the hospital when he did.
Um, sorry friend but the doctor said you’re going to die.
Cynthia McKinney or Barbara Lee are in France?
I got nailed by a pygmy rattlesnake once, of the 2 bites the Brown Recluse was by far the worse.
Having conversations sometimes with my European friends, I grasp how different they think sometimes simply because many of the dangers that exist in the US don’t exist in Europe.
I like to point out to them all the dangers the average person in say, southern Georgia or Florida or Louisana has to be educated about. Things that will kill you. Gators. Rattlesnakes. Copperheads. Water mocs. Coral snakes. And of course there are the non-poisonous ones that you have to learn so you don’t get them mixed up. Rabid animals (rabies doesn’t exist in UK). Wild boar. Packs of wild dogs. Bobcat. Cougar. Bear. Black Widow spider. Brown Recluse spider. This, just to name a few. And we haven’t even got on the human varieties yet. What to do when there’s gunfire. What to do when someone goes ‘postal’. Etc.
Europeans just don’t have that same sense of there being things out there that will kill you (and in some cases eat you) that one has to be on the lookout for and be prepared against. It’s not their fault- all these things got killed off a long time ago in Europe. But it does make a distinct difference in the way they think as compared to the average American who lives in or near a rural environment.
These spiders like to hide under bark in nature.
They are hunting spiders so they move around a lot.
They like to reside in cellulose containing materials like cotton sheets, cardboard, etc. I’m guessing because it is closer to hiding under bark.
A few pointers:
Store things in sealed plastic containers on metal shelves.
Don’t leave beds fully made if they won’t be slept it for a long time. Or, carefully change the sheets before a human crawls into the bed.
If you know you have them around your home then I would certainly keep your bedroom uncluttered and check the bed before you get in it. (I have found several spiders over the years)
When moving stuff around, tape around the top of your gloves to prevent a spider from falling into the glove—a common bite as spiders will try to drop to the ground when threatened, landing in your glove on the way.
Pest control is a good idea to cut down on the general pest population in the vicinity (their food supply). It’s very difficult to kill spiders directly with pest control services without diminishing/eliminating their food source. Some spiders are known to have survived full-house fumigations (tenting).
That’s what I know. Perhaps someone else has more to add.
They are nasty little buggers
The euros have good reason to be particularly afraid of these spiders.
If they get bitten, they’ll need treatment, but they’ll have to wait four days in the emergency room while their limbs rot off, or schedule an appointment for 3 months later to be seen. By that time they’ll be dead or will have flown to the U.S. for treatment. But hey, their system is superior to ours because they have a ‘right’ to ‘free’ healthcare, and we don’t (yet)!
Here in FL we’ve got all sorts of nasty bugs. I’ve found a few Brown Widows in my garage. I (very carefully) pick them up and throw them in a Fire Ant pile. Spider is devoured in seconds! Cruel? Maybe. Fun? Definitely!
Appears to be a recluse in that picture. I would contact a local pest control company for more information and help. If your in Oregon I will leave a local link and another one for the USA.
http://www.ccpwildlifecontrol.com/index.html
http://www.responsiblewildlifecontrol.com/index.html