Spiders More Active This Time of Year

By | Posted - Aug. 3, 2006 at 5:38 p.m.

Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes

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Ed Yeates Reporting The summer months seem to bring out all sorts of wildlife, especially insects, but just because you see more, doesn't always mean there are more.

Spiders, it seems that in the past few months more have been crawling along baseboards and up walls inside our homes.

Dr. Martin Caravati, Medical Director, Utah Poison Control Center: "We get a lot of calls about spider bites, and it seems that maybe this summer it's picked up a bit."

Many people think this means the spider population is growing this year, but Utah State entomologist Dr. Jay Karren says spiders are just more active in July and August because they are mating.

Males at this time are often more aggressive and prone to bite. The Utah Poison Control Center gets about 800 spider bite calls a year. Dr. Caravati says most are harmless, but if enough venom enters the body from a particular species, it can really make you sick.

Dr. Caravati: "The black widow typically causes severe pain, muscle cramps, spasms, headache, sweating. Often you have to go to the hospital because it so painful."

Three-year-old Audrey Uribe was bit three weeks ago while playing in the backyard.

Jackie Fristoe, Audrey's mom: "When I first noticed the spider bite it was red and when we woke up there was a red line going up her leg so we decided to take her to the emergency room. They put her on antibiotics right away through an IV."

Doctors never could figure out what spider bit her, but three weeks later her toe is blistering and still hurts. Most bites will not escalate to what Audrey had to go through.