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Myth of the Brown Recluse

spiders.ucr.edu

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Re: Myth of the Brown Recluse

#71

Post by cgriswald »

mabbo wrote: post #44
Mtinie wrote: post #11

As a native-born Californian, I’m glad to hear it. As a long-term, transplanted resident of Virginia, however, I’m keenly aware of the statistically small, but non-zero chance of running afoul with a (suspected) brown recluse. In 2014 I spent six days in the hospital after being being bitten on the ankle. Extensive courses of I.V. antibiotics were used to combat the necrotizing aspects of the venom. Along with a numb…

Not that I don't believe you (the word 'necrotizing' sends shivers up my spine) but since you didn't catch the spider itself, are there any other species of spider that may have been the biter?

I live in the Bay Area in a warmer microclimate. We've got widows, sizable orb weavers, and supposedly tarantulas (although I've never seen one and have my doubts). I've twice been bitten by something while either under my house or in my basically wild yard and gotten nasty infection. One bite was on my elbow and become necrotic. It was treated only with antibiotics. It now looks like I took a bullet. The other was on my neck and required surgery. Although I had some mild symptoms suggestiong a black widow bite, they were also symptoms of infection, so the doctor concluded it was not a widow that bit me. Anything that can pierce the skin can give you a nasty infection.

Re: Myth of the Brown Recluse

#72

Post by Pxtl »

What happens is occasionally you get news about some poor soul with multiple amputations because of necrotic tissue, and people assume "must've been a brown recluse" because it's a suitable scapegoat.

And of course, the fear of the brown recluse is that they don't really look like anything. We all think we can recognize a black widow, but a brown recluse just looks like a typical house spider.

That said, I'm suspicious a bit about comments how spiders never bite you. Last year suddenly the yellow sac spiders in the neighborhood got aggressive - I have no idea why, they're normally harmless house spiders all over my area, but I and a friend of mine both got bit by them completely out of the blue without warning. Spider just walked on and chomped. He told me he'd heard from others similar stories recently... I assumed it was some kind of distemper infection or something seasonal since normally they're harmless.

It stung like hell and left my arm sore for a week.

Re: Myth of the Brown Recluse

#73

Post by k1ns »

enraged_camel wrote: post #64
k1ns wrote: post #59

I live in Brown Recluse country. For a little over a year, I lived in an apartment absolutely infested with Brown Recluse spiders. The entire block of apartments (i.e. units sharing one roof) had the problem. AFAIK, we were the only block at the complex with the issue. Early on in living there I captured several of the spiders and had them identified. I was terrified, to say the least. When I say infestation, I mean…

>>One year and one week after moving into the apartment, I was bitten. One of the poor creatures found its way under my covers and into my shirt while I was sleeping OK, I think I'm going to step outside to get some air...

I know it sounds terrible, but it's honestly a rare thing. We never found one on our bed, ever. The first time I know of one being in our bed was that night.

I've spoken a lot with the Entomology department at a well-known university to try and learn as much as possible about these spiders. From what I've learned, Brown Recluse spiders actually have a hard time biting people (physically and mentally). They need encouragement - such as a life threatening situation - to even want to bite us. Even then, I've been told that they have physical trouble biting us hard enough to break through much skin and need help in that department as well (i.e. rolling/stepping onto one where the added force assists them in biting deeper).

The experience cost me about a half-tube of hydrocortisone cream but thats really it.

Re: Myth of the Brown Recluse

#74

Post by cgriswald »

jessaustin wrote: post #37
nfritsche wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We don't laugh that hard, I have been bit twice, and both left sizable scars. Although, if you know you have been bit and get treatment within in a day or two it shouldn't be that bad. --Arkansan

It is better now that we have running water and don't have to use the outhouse. That was a bad scene for brown recluse bites, in particular with respect to the typical bite location.

As a kid, we once visited a cabin and my mom sat down on the toilet and was surprised by a spider. Ever since then, I always check for spiders under the seat before I'll sit. If I had had to use an outhouse, I probably would have squated over the seat like they squat in some countries...

Re: Myth of the Brown Recluse

#77

Post by cantankerous »

I've lived in Portland OR, Mid MO, and the Kansas City area. In mid-Missouri, the brown recluse is the standard house spider. Pretty much every spider in my house there was a brown recluse. I had a weird bruise-y/necrotic bite on my hip that I assumed came from one that got in bed with me. It healed up fine without any medical intervention even though it lingered for awhile. I suspect a lot of people get bitten over the span of their lives but the bites aren't really noticeable. Spiders get in your bed or get into your clothes sometimes. It takes a bit of work/luck to get a recluse bite. They're not aggressive and they're not looking for trouble.

The West Coast, in my experience, has very little on the Midwest when it comes to spiders and bugs. In Oregon I was blown away by the lack of bugs. I could leave my doors and windows open at night and nothing seemed to come in. Unreal! The only major thing Portland seemed to have on the middle states is slugs. Waking up in the morning to find slug trails in my kitchen and in the dog bowl was a weird experience. Live and learn!

Re: Myth of the Brown Recluse

#78

Post by BeetleB »

jermaustin1 wrote: post #69
okreallywtf wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How do you know that it was a brown recluse? I'm not disputing, I'm just wondering if it was assumed based on the injury or if you were able to find the actual spider.

Just going off what the doctors told me. A friend later told me that MRSA sometimes mimics the same symptoms, but both occurred during summer, and not around other kids or in a hospital setting.

Funny. 10 years ago, I lived at the northern edge of the brown recluse zone. I saw many spiders in my apartment building that looked like them - can't say for sure. Then one day I developed sudden swelling on my thigh. It went from nothing to fairly swollen in about 2 hours.

I went to the doctor and he said "Could be a spider bite, or could be a staph infection. No way to know - just take these antibiotics and pray."

Then earlier this year it happened again - at a similar spot. Doctor said the same thing. No brown recluses in this area, but he said it could be a different spider.

Re: Myth of the Brown Recluse

#79

Post by axiomdata316 »

This is an odd claim. I live in Riverside where this article was written and found two brown recluse spiders in the last year. One outside by the front door and the second inside my bedroom. The tell tale identifier is the small violin shape in its back. They may not be common in California but they're common in my house in Riverside California just down the road from UCR.

Re: Myth of the Brown Recluse

#80

Post by jxramos »

Quite liked this jab """I repeatedly have seen the media in their "quest to seek out the truth" write completely speculative stories about the existence of the brown recluse in California. Unfortunately, the truth is not nearly good enough to sell news and therefore, a speculative story is fabricated based upon faulty assumptions."""
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