Western Widow

Watering the plants in the side yard, I tried to dislodge what I thought to be an abandoned cobweb spun between the hose and the house by spritzing it only to discover it was most certainly still occupied by a wet western widow who barged out of her hiding place to see what the hell was going on.

I’m surprised I actually finished watering first instead of just dropping the hose and running to get my cam. Here’s the best snap I got, a macro, from about an inch or so away (any non-arachnipobes who are still here can click to triplify):

Given the lack of definition to the telltale hourglass-shaped coloration on its abdomen, at first I thought it might have been what I’ve heard of commonly referred to as a “false widow,” but it turns out to be the western variety. Yes, the regional equivalent of the “most venomous spider in North  America.”

Oooooooo!

Did I kill it? Of course not. Why should I? I’d rather marvel and respect then freak and destroy. And besides, it’s not hurting anything accept the critters it preys on, so instead of harming it I actually apologized for disturbing it and then intruding upon it with my point-n-shoot.