Omigosh! A Brown Recluse!

Today, during our pest exterminator's routine treatment and inspection, he found a spider in one of the sticky traps he'd set out in a corner of my office upstairs during his last visit. He aimed an electronic gadget at the trap, and it gave off a signal that the spider was, indeed, a Brown Recluse!

I was astonished. In the twenty-seven years I've lived in this house, never once has a Brown Recluse surfaced. The exterminator told us not to worry unduly...that it was a good sign he had found only one, and it was upstairs. Generally, he said, the spiders come in on the ground floor of a house. The fact that this one was upstairs probably means it was transported there from outside, in a shopping bag, or box, or something.

Far from easing my mind, that information sort of creeped me out. What bags or boxes had I thrust my hands into recently that might have contained that potentially deadly spider? I'll be extra careful from now on with bags, boxes, clothing, shoes, and dark corners!

The exterminator set out lots of sticky traps (said to be the best defense against these spiders), and applied a killing bait all around the house outside.

Brown Recluse spiders are common in the south, though I've never seen one up close before today. According to a website at http://www.brownreclusespider.com/ About 50% of bites from these spiders are 'dry,' meaning that no venom is injected and nothing happens to the victim. In other cases, though, if the victim is bitten in fatty tissue, it can cause systemic reactions like severe headaches, nausea, vomiting, soreness, and flu-like symtoms. And in extreme cases, where bites have not been taken care of right away, treatment has included skin grafts or even amputation. Some have died of these bites. I can't imagine not seeking treatment at the first hint of a spider bite!

Although there is no reason to be terrified, there is certainly reason to be alert and cautious. I'm just glad the spider was discovered, dead, by the exterminator, instead of by my careless hand.