Florida Spiders

Facts and Information about the Florida Spiders
Did you know the following facts about the arachnid commonly known as the Florida Spiders?  Description and key features for spider Identification. The easy way to identify spiders!

Florida Spiders identification - what does it look like?
A few of the most significant spiders found in Florida include:

• The Black Widow spider

  • Female's are a shine black colour

  • With a red hourglass shaped marking on the underside of her rounded abdomen

  • Females can also have an orange or red patch above their spinnerets on the top side of their abdomen

• The Brown Widow spider

  • Colour can range from tan to a dark brown to black, with a few shades of grey

  • They also have an hourglass marking on the underside much like the black widow species, however the Brown widow's hourglass is normally a vivid orange or a yellowish colour.

• The Daddy Long Legs spider

  • This spider is a very fragile spider

  • They have a very cylindrical abdomen

  • Eyes are arranged in two lateral groups of three, with two smaller median contiguous eyes

  • The family of this spider can have either 8 or 6 eyes

  • They are normally a grey to brown colour with band or chevron markings

• Jumping Spider

  • With over 5,000 species they can very in colour dramatically, From blacks to browns, orange, red and white

  • They are normally rather small with prominent eyes and are rather hairy.

• Wolf Spider

  • Wolf spiders riley on camouflage for protection so are collared appropriately

  • They have shorter legs than other spiders and appear more robust

  • Their also large and hairy and commonly patterned in black, grey and brown hues.

What do the Florida Spiders eat? What is its prey?
These spiders found in Florida eat a rand of insects such as:

• Black Widow Spiders:

  • flies

  • Mosquitoes
  • Grasshoppers
  • Beetles
  • Caterpillars
  • Woodlice
  • Diplopods
  • Chilopods
  • Other Spiders

• Brown Widow Spider:

  • Insects

  • Flies
  • Mosquitoes
  • Grasshoppers
  • Beetles
  • Caterpillars
  • Woodlice
  • Diplopods
  • Chilopods
  • Other arachnids are also at risk
    

• Daddy Long Leg Spider:

  • Some species of Daddy long leg spiders will invade other spiders webs and eat the host, any eggs and prey they may have caught

  • Daddy long leg spiders will naturally hunt the Tegenaria species, they will also attack and eat redback spiders and huntsman spiders.   

• Jumping Spiders:

  • Feed on many different insects

• Wolf Spiders:

  • Crickets

  • Other spiders
  • Ants
  • Grasshoppers
  • They will also occasionally take on small frogs and lizards.

Is the Florida Spiders poisonous?
All types (except Uloboridae) are poisonous! The Black Widow spider and Brown Widow spider have the most medically significant venom, causing:

• Muscle aches

• Nausea
• Paralysis of the diaphragm

The Daddy long leg spider is believed to be unable to penetrate human skin with its fangs, making them harmless to humans.

Jumping spider bite can cause:

• Nausea

• Headaches
• Fevers

Wolf Spider bites can cause:

•  Swelling

• Mild pain
• Itching 

How big is the Florida Spiders?
The size of the Florida Spiders ranges between smaller that 1mm to as large as 30mm.

Where do Florida Spiders live, what is its habitat?
These Spiders can be found around Florida in places such as:

• Some build their webs near the ground

• In dark undisturbed areas
• Nest sites are quite often near holes made by animals or around construction openings and piles of wood
• In the home they like the same kind of places that are dark and undisturbed like behind furniture or under a desk or an undisturbed basement
• Around buildings
• Very messy, irregular and tangled webs
• Dark and damp places such as caves, under rocks, loose bark, abandoned animal burrows
• They will also build webs in undisturbed places around the home such as cellars
• Tropical forests
• Scrub lands
• Temperate forests
• Intertidal zones
• Desserts
• Mountains
• Suburban garden
• Shrub land
• Woodland
• Alpine meadows
• A few build burrows with either an open door or a trapdoor
• Some wolf spiders have specific microhabitat needs such as being near a stream

What is the average life span of a Florida Spider?
Spiders found in Florida live for a couple of years on average, between 1 year and for as long as 5 years. 

Do Florida Spiders have good eyesight?
Some spiders found in Florida do have good eyesight and are active hunters, were other spiders have very poor eyesight and rely on a web to catch their prey and for the vibration to direct them to the prey. 

Spider Exterminators - Pest Control 
Generally speaking, people do not like spiders especially Florida Spiders and most of all, do not want them in their homes! There are many forms of pest control and ways to exterminate spiders such as Florida Spiders. There are spider exterminators, services, spider zappers, spider traps, spider repeller, spider catchers, spider traps for the removal and extermination process. Advice is available on subjects such as pest controls, pest prevention, spider catchers, spider exterminators and how to kill spiders like Florida Spiders. Some people would like to eliminate spiders from there homes completely, this can be very difficult as an open window on a summers day will allow spiders in, even opening your front door when entering and leaving will allow pesky spiders in. It is very easy to get rid of Florida Spiders by catching them yourself. Its best not to kill spiders as they are very important in controlling the level of other insects that are pests.