Brown Widow Spider question
Genuine question here as I am battling tons and tons of brown widow spiders. I could use sound advice here.
So one female black widow equates to how many babies a year?
One female brown widow equates to how many babies a year?
Curious as to what is the average threshold for being an acceptable tolerable amount to live with around the home? In or out? I know having children/elderly/ and auto immune compromised may warrant different decisions.
My experience has been: let a few Brown Widows live outside, of course.
The Result: Starting in the spring, they start ramping up and by the time the heat rolls in they are absolutely out of control with hundreds wandering around and trying to make more. I mean they are everywhere. I go outside and run into cobwebs on the patio. They literally web overnight. I can constantly bat them down but then they come right back by the next morning.
They are in trees, plants, pots, patio furniture, trash bins, bikes, fencing, BBqs and basically everywhere else. Due to the sheer amount of them, they start coming into the house and garage and then produce even more. As you all know there are no predators or natural self checks for these guys. Brown widows overrun the black widows(black widows are simply not as prolific but can be if they are able to get out of hand). My lizards( and I have a lot running around) and beneficials don't seem to either really like these guys or simply can't keep up because they are so prolific. The way they web can also be challenging to break through for predators. Is this anyone else's experience with brown widows and how much are you willing to personally live with? A couple turns into hundreds by summer. Genuinely curious on this thread. I need to make some decisions. I mean how can we have anyone over? Who wants to sit down on a patio chair filled with cobwebs underneath with possible mined egg sacs. We clean them up and by the next day they are back at it again in the exact same spot. We simply can't keep up. Any serious advice would be appreciated? Of course, funny is good too!!
Posted Aug 12, 2026, 3:32 AM UTC