Black Widow Spiders

This passage describes the dangerous black widow spider.

Lexile Level: 900L

Categories: Animals & Nature

One of the most poisonous spiders in the world could be hiding under a piece of wood or in a hidden corner of your attic. There are three types of black widow spiders in the United States. They are the southern black widow, the northern black widow, and the western black widow. All of them have poisonous bites. When they bite an animal or another insect, they inject a neurotoxic venom that attacks the animal's nervous system. The venom takes about ten minutes to take effect. Humans can die of a black widow spider bite unless the doctor gives them antivenom. Female black widow spiders are much larger than the males. Females are black and have a red hourglass mark on their bellies. Males are half the size of females and do not have a mark. The female black widow spiders often eat their mates and even their offspring. That is why they are called black widows.