Medically significant. A bite can cause a slow-healing wound that needs medical assessment, though most bites stay minor. It is not aggressive and bites when trapped against skin — in clothing, bedding, or a shoe that has been left out.
We identify, we don't diagnose. If you've been bitten or stung and symptoms develop, or you're worried, seek medical attention.
Size6–12 mm body, 20–30 mm leg span
MarkingsSix eyes in three widely spaced pairs, not the usual eight · Uniform tan to brown legs — no bands, no stripes, no spines
WhereUndisturbed, dry, dark places: stacked cardboard, wall voids, the backs of wardrobes, garages, sheds, and clothing that has been left folded.
How to tell it apart
Six eyes in three widely spaced pairs, not the usual eight
Uniform tan to brown legs — no bands, no stripes, no spines
Dark violin shape on the head-plate, neck pointing backwards
Body about the size of a small coin, legs slender and long
Flat, irregular, sheet-like web in an undisturbed corner, never a neat orb
Where you’ll find it
The south-central United States — roughly Kansas and Texas east to Georgia and north to Ohio. It is genuinely absent from California, the Pacific Northwest and most of the northeast, despite being reported from all of them constantly. If you are outside that range, the odds that you have found a recluse are very low.
Undisturbed, dry, dark places: stacked cardboard, wall voids, the backs of wardrobes, garages, sheds, and clothing that has been left folded.
How it behaves
Reclusive, as the name says. It hunts at night on the ground and spends the day pressed into a crevice. It does not chase, jump, or defend territory, and it will run rather than confront. Almost all bites happen when someone puts on clothing or reaches into a stored box with the spider already in it.
What a bite looks like
Most bites cause a small red mark that heals on its own. A minority develop into a slow-healing ulcer over several days, sometimes with a pale centre and a darker rim. Crucially, a great many wounds diagnosed as recluse bites turn out to be something else entirely — bacterial infections in particular look very similar and are far more common.
Usually painless at the moment it happens. Soreness typically develops over the following few hours rather than immediately.
We identify, we don't diagnose. If a wound is spreading, deepening, or you feel unwell, see a doctor promptly — and if you can safely keep the spider, bring it, because that removes all the guesswork.
A skin mark cannot confirm which animal caused it. Read the bug bite and sting guide for the limits and the symptoms that should end an online search.
You’ve found one indoors
Don't handle it. Trap it under a glass if you want it identified, or leave it and remove the harbourage instead: clear stacked cardboard, keep clothing off the floor, and shake out shoes and gloves that have been stored. Sticky traps along skirting boards are the standard way to find out whether you actually have a population rather than one wanderer.
Common questions
Is the violin marking reliable?
Less than its reputation suggests. Several harmless species carry a similar dark patch, and on a worn or dark individual it can be very hard to see. The eyes are what settle it: six, in three widely spaced pairs, where almost every other spider has eight.
Do brown recluses live in California?
No. Loxosceles reclusa does not occur there, and verified reports are vanishingly rare. California has its own recluse relatives in limited desert areas, but the brown recluse of the south-central states is not a California spider.
What is most often mistaken for a brown recluse?
Male southern house spiders, barn funnel weavers, wolf spiders and cellar spiders account for the large majority of mistaken reports. All four are harmless, and all four have eight eyes.
How dangerous is a brown recluse bite really?
Serious enough to take seriously, and far less common than the internet suggests. Most bites heal without intervention. A minority ulcerate and need medical care. Deaths are extremely rare.
mayfly1963 · CC-BY