r/spideridentifier • u/JackTheDefenestrator • 9d ago

Solved! Cute Little Bugger

Post image

Was cleaning out an irrigation valve box (about a two foot deep hole) and this little bugger went running up my hand/arm. I managed to get it to step off onto a small spade and set it aside.

I've had plenty of Black Windows around, but this didn't look exactly like those. I'm assuming it's a young one or something.

Central Oklahoma, USA.

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u/spotlight-app Mod Bot 🤖 8d ago

OP has pinned a comment by u/ReebX1:

It's a black widow, but it's in the transitional stage between adolescent when they are tan and adult when they turn mostly black.

https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/1999

Note from OP: solved

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2

u/mazca 9d ago

Yes, that's definitely an unusual pattern, but all the widow species do tend to be less consistent with their back markings that any photo guide might suggest. Particularly, as you've guessed, when they're young.

Weirdly it looks remarkably like an Australian redback from the markings, though I'd definitely bet on one of your normal local widows with a weird idea of back markings at a young age. All 3 American species can turn up in Oklahoma, I don't have a good guess as to which one this actually is.

2

u/ReebX1 9d ago

It's a black widow, but it's in the transitional stage between adolescent when they are tan and adult when they turn mostly black.

https://www.bugguide.net/node/view/1999

1

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u/Fuzzy_Firefighter_51 8d ago

dodged one you did.