Spider control can be a major concern for homeowners – particularly for those who live in Florida. There are about 3,000 species of spiders throughout North America, but only two in the southern and western United States can cause serious harm when accidentally disturbed – the black widow and brown recluse.
Black widow spiders are most recognized for the red hourglass shape under their abdomen. This spider gets its name from the popular belief that the female black widow spider eats the male after mating, although this rarely happens. Black widows are poisonous when ingested during the first 17 days of their life.
Brown recluse spiders have a characteristic dark brown violin marking on their back. These spiders often infest cedar shake roofs and spin irregular webs, which are used as a retreat.
The common house spider is usually the spider most often encountered indoors. It is a nuisance pest, probably more because of its webs than the spider itself. The house spider is found worldwide and is common throughout the United States and Canada.
Unlike most spiders, wolf spiders don’t hunt with webs. Instead, they chase their prey using their fast running ability. These spiders are often big and hairy which alarms some people, but they are primarily nuisance pests. Over 100 species of wolf spiders are found in the United States and Canada.
Scientist have discovered a new genus of spiders in Colombia that they’re calling, “Stormtropis”. Name sounds familiar huh? That’s because this new species of spider was named after the iconic “Stormtrooper” villains from the beloved Sci-Fi classic film series, “Star Wars”. The tribute name was given to the newly discovered genus of spiders because each one of these spiders were found to have a near identical appearance to each other, just like how all the Stormtroopers in Star Wars wear identical sets of armor. Also like the Stormtroopers from the movies, it’s also been reported that the spider reflects a clumsy like nature.
The scientist responsible for the discovery proclaimed they named the spider Stormtropis because they’re big fans of the classic film series, and they wanted to give the spider a name that stood out; something that would grab the attention of an audience that may not normally be interested in this realm of science. They scientist said,
We wanted to make a play on words with the name of the known genus, Paratropis, and of course, we also wanted to pay tribute to one of the greatest sagas of all time.”
One interesting and unique quirk the spider has, is the ability to stick dirt particles to their bodies, allowing the spider to camouflage into their environments. Almost liking putting on a suit of armor, like the Stormtroopers they’re named after.
While this may quickly become a new favorite arachnid of spider and Star Wars lovers everywhere, don’t expect to see one in person without a little bit of work. They’re only found in South America, and they’re very small. Normally found under a pile of leaves or found in rotting trees. They also very skilled at camouflage, with a combination of all these skills, it’s no wonder they’re just be discovered now.