Violin Spider
The Violin Spider: Not Quite As Delicate As The Name Implies
The violin spider by any name is considered highly toxic to humans, particularly those people who are elderly or under the age of 7. Violin spiders, also known as brown recluse or aggressive house spiders, are venomous arachnid indigenes to the southern regions of North America. Reports and positive sightings of the brown recluse spider have been reported as far south as the lower peninsula of Michigan, but these are few and far between. Even in his most natural habitat, he is seldom happened upon by way of an attack. Reclusive he is, and becomes aggressive only when he feels threatened or intimidated.
The violin spider is named so for the unique mark adorning the top of his head area, or cephalothorax, which is shaped like a violin or fiddle with the neck pointing toward the rear of the spider. . He seeks cool, dark places, but his distaste for frost often drives him indoors of buildings and houses. He also frequents the deep, damp quiet of the open spaces beneath stairwells both indoors and out, as well as cellars and rarely visited sheds.
The male violin spider, as is true for most species of arachnid, is visibly thinner in appearance than is the female, but the color pallet of both sexes is contained in the same realms of deep tans to dark browns. The violin pattern on this spider is created by a black, shiny bulb which moves into a stripe. It is rare for the violin spider to exceed a length of ¾ inch, which is quite remarkably small for the poison that he packs. The tarantula is gigantic next to this spider, yet is not venomous. Nature can be quite fascinating, if not a bit confusing at times.
As other, less threatening species of spider can bare the fiddle mark which resembles that of the violin spider; you may be able to detect a more exact identification. Any spider baring this mark should be approached and trapped with the utmost caution, and not unless you feel completely confident about your safety. That said, should you capture a specimen for identification, examine the front of his thorax, the area just above his mouth, for the eye pattern which is exclusive to the violin spider. He has only six eyes, whereas most spiders have eight. Some spiders, such as the North American Wolf Spider, have only two eyes, but the violin or brown recluse spider is the only species with six.
His eyes are set in three pairs of two. One set is located directly to the front of his face, and one pair on each side of the face just higher than the first. In description, it takes on the look of a triclops, with one eye peering from the middle and two side eyes protecting his flanks.