Brown+Recluse+Spider-+Charlie

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The Brown Recluse Spide r

By Charlie Smith __ Introduction __ The Brown Recluse Spider or Loxosceles recluse belongs to a group of spiders known as the Recluse Spiders in the Genus Loxosceles. These spiders are also called violin spiders and are very venomous. __** Scientific Classification **__ __Kingdom:__ Animalia

__Phylum:__ Arthropoda

__Class:__ Arachnida

__Order:__ Araneae

__Family:__ Sicariidae

__Genus:__ Loxosceles

__Species__: L. recluse

__ Anatomy __

The Brown Recluse Spider has six eyes arranged in pairs. The adult spider grows to 6 to 20mm in size. They have eight legs, a pair of pedipalps, an abdomen and a cephalothorax. It has a violin shape on itscephalothorax. They are usually a light brown colour and they have tiny little hairs on their body.
 * __ Habitat __**

The Brown Recluse Spiders are found in the central and Midwestern states of USA, down to the Gulf of Mexico. They build messy webs in dry isolated places like under rotten tree bark, in sheds, garages, cellars, cupboards, and wood piles.




 * [[image:4gminibeasts/brown-recluse-spider-web.jpg width="347" height="275"]] ||
 * brown-recluse-spider-web.jpg ||
 * This is a web of a Brown Recluse Spider. **


 * __ Feeding and Predators __**

.................................

The Brown Recluse Spider likes to eat bugs like cockroaches and crickets. The have been known to feed on a variety of insects, other arthropods and occasionally other spiders. It senses its prey by feeling the movement through vibrations. It bites quickly and paralyses its prey but doesn’t wrap its prey in silk.

Jumping spiders, cats, wasps and cellar spiders like to eat Brown Recluse Spiders.



Strawberry ..............................Cricket........................................Brown Recluse Spider ...........Jumping Spider....
 * __ Food Chain __**

Reproduction

At night the male spider goes in search of females in order to mate. The spider web serves as a comb where the female Brown Recluse Spider lays its eggs. Most eggs get laid during May through to July. The females lay about 50 eggs in each egg sac which she hangs up in her web.

Spiderlings
 * [[image:4gminibeasts/brown-recluse-spider-babies.jpg]] ||
 * brown-recluse-spider-babies.jpg ||

The spiderlings emerge from the egg sacs after about a month or two and stay in the mother’s web for one or two moults so she can guard over them. Moulting is shedding of their exoskeleton because they outgrow their skin. The tiny emerging spiderlings gradually increase in size, moulting 6 to 8 times before becoming adults.

...........................................................................Eggs in egg sac .....................
 * __ Lifecycle __**

........................................... Adult Spiders.....................................................................................Spiderlings



................................................Moulting and Growing


 * __ Did you know? __**

The Brown Recluse Spider can survive up to a year without food or water.

The Brown Recluse Spider has a violin shape on its cephalothorax.

The Brown Recluse Spider has six eyes instead of 8 like other spiders.

It is not aggressive and only bites if it is disturbed. It can leave a nasty wound.