The 3 States With the Most Venomous Spiders

1. Texas Takes the Lead With 10 Venomous Spiders

In total, there are well over 1,000 different species of spiders in the state of Texas. Thankfully, only 10 of them are venomous enough to cause any threats.

Of the 13 recluse species found in the US, Texas is home to six of them. Of those, the Texas recluse is the most common. The species doesn’t matter all that much as they are all venomous.

There are five species of black widow spiders in the US (including the brown widow) and all but one are in Texas. The last one, the red widow (Latrodectus bishopi) is only in certain parts of Florida.

The 10 species of venomous spiders in Texas include:

• Apache Recluse – Loxosceles apachea
• Texas Recluse – Loxosceles devia
• Arizona Recluse – Loxosceles arizonica
• Mediterranean Recluse – Loxosceles rufescens
• Big Bend Recluse – Loxosceles blanda
• Brown Recluse – Loxosceles reclusa
• Brown Widow – Latrodectus geometricus
• Northern Black Widow – Latrodectus variolus
• Southern Black Widow – Latrodectus mactans
• Western Black Widow – Latrodectus hesperus

Despite their being 10 different species, they all look fairly similar. For example, all the black widows are black with a bright red hourglass shape. Even the brown widow, which is a lot more brown than black, has an hourglass.

The recluses, even if they look a little different, are still identifiable by the fiddle-shaped mark on the top of their head.

In addition to these 10 that have enough venom to potentially send someone to the hospital, there are a few spiders in Texas that can cause mild to moderate reactions. Both tarantulas and jumping spiders also have venom. Their bites can cause pain, itching, and swelling, but are far less dangerous than the bites from the black widow.

2. California Comes in a Close Second With 8 Venomous Spiders

In total, it’s thought that California also has over 1,000 different spider species. However, only about 66 unique species have been officially confirmed and sighted. These species fall into about 54 family groups. Of these 60-something species that are officially confirmed, eight of them are venomous enough to be dangerous.

The eight venomous spiders in California are:

• Arizona Recluse – Loxosceles arizonica
• Desert Recluse – Loxosceles deserta
• Baja Recluse – Loxosceles palma
• Russell’s Recluse – Loxosceles russelli
• Chilean Recluse – Loxosceles laeta
• Martha’s Recluse – Loxosceles martha
• Brown Widow – Latrodectus geometricus
• Western Black Widow – Latrodectus hesperus

Some of the spiders on this list are in small parts of California. For example, the desert recluse and the Chilean recluse are only found in the southernmost area of California. People in central and northern California will likely not ever come across these two species.

The western black widow, on the other hand, lives throughout the entirety of California. Though brown recluses are the most common recluse spiders in the US, they aren’t actually found in California. However, several other species of recluse are in the deserts and homes in California.

Though not on the list above, as it’s not a recluse or a widow species, the yellow sac spiders are also worth a mention. Their bites start off looking a lot like a recluse’s bite, to the point where people confuse one for the other. However, the final symptoms are far less severe. The bite is painful, and it’s slow to heal.

3. Arizona Has 7 Spider Species

Tarantulas are probably the most well-known spiders in Arizona. Not because they are the most abundant, but because they are big and easy to spot wandering in the deserts.

There aren’t very many species of spiders in Arizona, all things considered. Only about 26 unique species have been confirmed including some of the more well-known spider species throughout the US such as house spiders, wolf spiders, and grass spiders.

Of these 26 species, seven of them are considered seriously venomous.

Arizona is home to a total of seven venomous spiders, including:

• Apache Recluse – Loxosceles apachea
• Grand Canyon Recluse – Loxosceles kaiba
• Arizona Recluse – Loxosceles arizonica
• Desert Recluse – Loxosceles deserta
• Tucson Recluse – Loxosceles sabina
• Brown Widow – Latrodectus geometricus
• Western Black Widow – Latrodectus hesperus

Like California, there is no well-known brown recluse spider in Arizona. Instead, there are five other species of recluse and two species of black widow. The black widows in Arizona are the more well-known species; the western black widow and the brown widow.

There’s some confusion about which venomous species are in Arizona. For a while, it was thought that the brown recluse did live in the state, but it’s now thought that someone mistook the desert recluse for a brown recluse. Southern black widows have also apparently been sighted in the state, but there have not been any confirmed animals found.

Of these seven venomous spiders in Arizona, the three most common throughout the state are the Arizona recluse, the desert recluse, and the western black widow. The others are in only a few places throughout the state.

There are a lot of misconceptions about wolf spiders. Many people tend to believe they are highly venomous, but this is not the case. Though they easily take down prey with the venom that they have, this venom isn’t strong enough to do much to humans.

Unless you’re one of the few allergic to wolf spider bites, they won’t cause you much more harm and irritation than a bee sting. They are also pretty relaxed spiders, and won’t bite unless there’s no other option.