spider
Posted by susan koler on May 25, 2006
Q: We live in the mountains of Colorado and have found a very different looking spider. Know one in the area knows what it is. It looks like a black widow but without the red belly and its brown and shiny. I guess we want to know if it's poisenous. But I don't think without a picture you be able to tell.
Habitat: suburban/yard
State: Colorado
Habitat: suburban/yard
A: I'm afraid you're right that without a photo, I'm at a real disadvantage for making an ID. From your description, however, it sounds like your spider is NOT a Black Widow. Is it poisonous? If we want to be technical, it is poisonous (venomous) since all spiders are. But, only the Black Widow and Brown Recluse are dangerous and even these do not often cause any serious problems from their venom.
I can think of a couple of genera that may contain your mystery spider since they have the same body configuration as a Black Widow. Take a look at spiders in the genus Enoplognatha and Steatoda to see if one of these resembles your animal. Sorry I can't be more definite but hope this will help.
John Wiessinger ( May 25, 2006)