Hobo Spiders

The hobo spider, also known as the aggressive house spider, is brown and measures roughly 12-18mm in length. Its legs show no distinct rings and have short hairs. A hobo spider’s abdomen has several chevron shaped markings. This spider is especially active from July to September, when males search for females.
The hobo spider is capable of causing severe bites to humans. On average, venom is injected from a bite only 50% of the time. In fact, often times the victim doesn’t even realize they have been bitten. Typically, when venom is injected, the victim will experience an immediate redness which develops around the bite then begins to disappear within a few hours. Very often, for the first 24 hours, the bite appears to be no worse than that of a mosquito. However, it then begins to blister in the center and within 24 to 36 hours the blister breaks, leaving an open, oozing ulceration. This ulceration will scab over within three weeks from the initial bite, leaving a permanent scar. If the bite is delivered in fatty tissue, the lesion may be very deep and extensive, not healing for over two or three years.

Systematic reactions to hobo spider poisoning include severe headaches, nausea, vomiting, soreness and flu-like symptoms. In extreme cases where the bite was not taken care of early, skin graft, amputation, and the possibility of bone marrow failure may occur. Most bites occur when the hobo gets into bedding or clothing and is trapped next to the skin. This spider is commonly found in crawl spaces and around out-buildings.

The hobo spider creates a non-sticky trip web that doesn’t permanently stick insects to the web. Instead, once the prey trips on the web the hobo spider attacks it before it can get away. These spiders have to attack to eat otherwise they die of starvation. The webs they make are funnel shaped and are often attached to an object in the yard, by the foundation, between planters, or anything that remains stationary near ground level. Hobo spiders also make webs under the siding of homes and in plants or shrubbery.

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