Help Identify Spiders and More
If you are reading the comments and know what type of spider bite, a visitor has, please feel free to help.
Warning: Some of these pictures may show a scary spider or a bite that has become infected and could be considered disturbing to some, so if you don’t like the sight of rotted skin or exposed bone, this may not be for you. However, it does drive home the importance of seeking medical attention before it’s too late!
Have pictures and a story you would like to share? We would happily review and display them if you upload them here.
Would you like to see our collection of spider bite photos?
please help me with this!!.. I don’t know what really bite me.. but the area is in leg close to my pelvis area… they are several little pimples surrounding it..really tiny..they have like black dots on them.. I never had one like this before…what is it!! i found some more going down my leg… they are really tiny and lots of them surrounding and area…
I live in SC. and last week i got a spider bit on my arm. it didn’t amount to much but it was a little sore. now i have a much larger bit on my stomach. its red and swollen and is dark in the middle with white in the head of it. is there anyway you can tell me about what kind of spider this is and if i need to call an bug man. because this really hurts.
crystal
Ive been bitten either by a hobo or brown recluse spider and now there is a big hole in my arm. i must have gotten this bite last week, i noticed whenever you get bitten by one of the spiders you can not feel it.
I was in the park and was sitting on a bench then I felt pain like a pinprick so I checked and saw two holes on the bottom right leg. (That IS a spider bite isn’t it?) well, I don’t know if this happened within that day or within this week but I feel a bruised feeling near the affected area. Then vein looking types appeared on my foot (near the affected area). I don’t know how this is connected but I’m saying what I can observe because its WAY more visible than the veins on my left leg and I’m worried. Apart from that I don’t feel anything too painful. I just want to know if I should seek medical attention and if I can, I want to know A.S.A.P just to be safe.
Hello, I’m hoping someone can help me determine if I have in fact been bitten…
Three nights ago right before falling asleep my pinky finger started itching like crazy. I thought it was a big bite but hadn’t felt any bumps at all.
The next morning I woke up and my pinky was swollen, and still is three days later. I don’t know if the itching was just a fluke or is the cause of the swelling. I had no dots or scabs until yesterday and it is so microscopic that Im not even sure its even related.
I keep waiting for the swelling to go down (as i have no health insurance and cannot afford to go to a doctor for something that ends up being nothing at all-or at least nothing major) but Im getting more concerned as the swelling isn’t getting better or worse.
I know this is no substitute for medical attention, but I am trying to get more information prior to making the choice to go to a doctor and rack up a ridiculous bill.
I hope someone is here and still maintains this site to at least tell me if its a bite or something i should be worried about.
Thanks so much!
I was reading the post from vickijohn and spiderbite and I was thinking it could be bed bugs. My husband is a carpet cleaner and has had to do research on them. Bedbugs will leave small painless red marks and only some people will get them because only some people will have allergic reactions. Fumigation will not fix the issue. “Baking” the house and removing and destroying all furniture including decor like picture frames is the only way to resolve the issue. Bed bugs are the most adaptive bugs and one of the oldest know co habituating pests. The survive more poisons, can go dormant for months, hide anywhere not just beds, and can live 60 feet from a blood meal. Look online and most professional exterminators don’t know how to deal with them so look online. Good luck! If you have question email gizpanda52 [at] hotmail.com
This morning i woke up for school and i noticed that once i got in the shower my elbow started to burn and itch once it came in contact with water. I examined my elbow and saw a red bump about the size of the lead on a wooden pencil and two distinct holes, brownish in color. Its continuing to sting and i really dont want to come back from school with no elbow so can anybody help? And quick.
I am not sure what bit me;but it was small maybe 1 in body black with alittle yellow. I felt a burning sensation as I was working in the garden on Guam;I looked down where my hand was and saw the spider. Do youknowwhat this is I haven’t seen any pics online that look like it.
okay i have a spider bit on my knee and i don’t know what i was bit by and if you can help me i will tell you what my knee looks like it is red and my leg is bumpy and my knee is hurting and i cant walk much please help me…….
Number 6 ,7 , and 45 sound like flea bites, itchy like a mosquito bite but last longer. Treat everything at once, your home(including crawl spaces) your pets, and your yard. You may have to do a follow up after eggs hatch. Bugmobile guy should take care of everything.
hi i got bite by something not even sure what cause i was wearing some pretty tight jeans. i was working at a party around 11pm my right knee gets really itchy. i itched it over my jeans and it stopped itching. then it was itchy again like a half hour later. i was itching it pretty rough over my jeans. the area around the bite when i got home looked fine so i took a shower washed it and me. the next day when i wake up the area i was itching around the bite was and still is extra sensitive and felt and kinda looked like a bruise. its not as sensitive as it was yesterday morning. the bite now looks like an ingrown hair but doesn’t feel like one.
i popped it, which was hard cause the area where its at is really sensitive. maybe about a quarter size around it is red. i cant really tell if there is fang marks but the opening of the spot after i popped is about a half a centimeter and scabbed over. my boyfriend is really worried about me and i just want to see what other people think about it. the area where is was really sensitive is kinda hard now too which worries me a lot
oh yeah i live in phoenix arizona and it hurts a lot to bend my knee in any way
I was bit on Friday night – on my leg right above the back of my knee. I felt it instantly – sharp pain and itching. It swelled pretty quick and the skin was red, patchy and raised in a few different places (sort of like a mosquito bite). I looked for the culprit, but it was no where to be found! The next day, it was itchy and somewhat painful, off and on. It looked about the same, but it felt kind of rough, like a scab. On Sunday, it was still red and patchy, but now had a cluster of small blisters. The area is still raised and feels hard to the touch. I went to the doctor and was put on antibiotics. She couldn’t say for sure what it was that bit me. I’d love to know if you have an idea of what it was!
I live in Chula Vista, CA.
I have a small bite on my ankle. The bite was itchy at first. I don’t know what spider it was from, but I did find a dead spider under my bed a few days later. It was a reddish rust color with a long large-ish cream colored abdomen that was a little skinny.
The bite is only a very little pink around it. My whole ankle, foot, and most of my leg up to the knee has become swollen and painful. The bite itself is very small, a few centimeters from bite mark to bite mark. No other symptoms other than the swelling and tenderness when touched, and also throbbing sensation.
Thanks a lot!
i was just got in from play outside because i think i got bitten from a semian spider.I was about to ride my bike when i said ouch and went in and told my mom that i thought i got bitten by a spider.what should i do?
Hi Everyone,
I’m hoping someone can help me. My two year old son woke up last night complaining of hand and arm pain. When we flipped the lights on, we noticed his right hand and arm, all the way up to his biceps, were red and a bit swollen; almost as though he had a sunburn on that arm. It was also very warm to the touch. We couldn’t find any puncture wounds to indicate a bite, but couldn’t think of anything else that would cause this reaction. We decided to take him into the ER; but by the time we got halfway there, his arm had returned to normal and he seemed to be feeling fine. (We hadn’t given him anything!). So we came home. This morning, I inspected his arm again and noticed a small (ant size) mark on his right hand near his knuckle. It doesn’t necessarily look like a bite or puncture wound. More like a scratch. And my son is acting and seems to be feeling completely normal. I’m concerned that if he was bitten, that there might be a latent symptom which did not appear initially. Can anyone help us identify this???? Any input would be appreciated!
BTW – we live in northern california so I’m pretty it’s not the BR spider! ;)
I live in Texas. I woke up with an itch on my right forearm. As I was itching it i felt small bumps, my immediate thought was there is a spider in my bed…I found nothing. So after my spider search I began trying to pop these bumps nothing came out but they became very sore. After about thirty minutes my arm started getting red and splotchy about inch or two around the bumps. After I took shower the skin began to swell and turn solid red about the size of a quarter. The small bumps in the middle have now turned to a very very small single pore. This area has become very sore when touched. I’ve had staff before and Im almost positive this could not be it. Maybe it is not a spider bite, but if anyone could give me a hint to what this might be HELP please!!!
A few weeks ago, I was bitten by a spider. I think it was a brown recluse, but i’m not sure. The bites healed up, but one on my ankle was different. It was like a bite with a hard red circle around it. It’s healed up, but now I have another one on my upper leg. I tried squeezing it to see if there was any infected tissue, but only clear liquid like with any small cut came out. If I could find out what spider it was and whether it’s bad, that would be kind of helpful
hey i got a spider bite and the scab is barely on and then when i barely lift it up there is pus stuck to it and i feel that i need to get it out! what should i do?
I was watching tv last night and a spider ran across my blanket. A little while later after killing the spider I noticed a very very small white bump in my arm. Even though it is small, almost my whole upper arm is sensitive to the touch. Is this any kind of bite or am i just paranoid?
My bite is similar to to that of picture #994. Except mine isn’t that big. Same story, except my bite is not as big as that one. It’s smaller, but I think that it is getting bigger. A lot of pus came out yesterday so I put Hydrogen Peroxide to disinfect it. Same case, I went to the doctor and put me on Cephalexin (500 mg). However, no change either. If someone could please tell me what to do. The bite has become a sort of hole and burned.
I was on a plane flying back to school on Jan 7, 2010. All of the sudden, I felt a sharp pain climb from about the middle of my neck up to the top of my head. We were getting close to landing, so I figured it was some sort of decompression sickness. Later on I felt what seemed like a large pimple on the back of my neck. When I touched it, I felt that exact pain again only less intense. I got home and tried to pop it hoping it was a pimple and nothing happened. It feels hard and it’s about the size of a kernel of corn. When I put any sort of pressure on it, it begins to hurt. I’m worried because I put a tiny cut in it trying to pop it and its on the back of my neck so I can’t see it.
I have what I belileve to be a spider bite on the second toe of my left foot. It began to hurt two nights ago and woke me up. It hurts much worse this morning. My toe is red and swollen and appears to have two small bumps on the top. Before today, ice helped ease the pain; not so this morning.
Hi everyone! Okay so yesterday I was sitting on my couch with a blanket on me and went to let the dogs out and it felt like a bee stung me on my left leg. Today they look like pimples that are infected and it hurts to walk or do anything else. If anyone has any info about my bits then please post!!
My name is Jeffrey Hubbard. I saw on your site that you could help identify them. I have around 8 bites around my neck and head. These are pictures of the two big ones. Any help would be great.
Thank you so much.
Jeffrey Hubbard
Houston Texas.
Hi,
Attached is 2 pictures of a dime size rash just off to the left under
bottom lip. It’s been about 6 days and now has the black area in
the middle.
Do you have any idea what this could be? Please try to get back to me.
Thank you very much,
Christine
Hello,
I got bitten by something in a Paris (France) theatre on 22.12.09.
Bizarrely 2 ‘matching’ bites, one on each forearm, suggesting sth. hiding in each arm rest in the upholstery bit me, or I trapped a frightened spider (or sth else) between my crossed forearms as I sat in the dark watching the concert.
I felt nothing till at least an hour later, back in the hotel: two itchy little red ‘bites’ one on each arm. first thought: fleas, so I had a good shower.
In the night more and more itchy at the two bite sites.
Went to chemist.
By evening (c. 22 hours after being bitten) the bites had an red area getting to diameter of c.4 inches, (later about 6 inches), hot and burning rather than itching.
It freaked me by now so went to emergencies at a Paris hospital.
I realised now I had not been well all day: slight headache (I ‘never’ get headaches luckily), slight nausea, especially after eating, and kind of edgy, angry, even weepy all day, very easily upset, hating the city and the crowds and the stress of the Metro. Not ‘me’ at all.
Two docs found the matching bites really bizarre and had no answers, except to apply nothing locally so as not to masque any symptoms, and case me antihistamine (orally) to reduce the irritation so I’d not scratch in the night.
Day three and four and five, as blisters formed the hot, pink hard outer circles reduced, but inner circle got redder.
One blister burst and liquid (lymph?) leaked out. I took to washing both sites with hot water and soap. I found a black speck near the centre of one bite, in the bumpy tissue round the hole in the blister… as though the hot water and soap had drawn something to the surface. I took a very sharp pointed knife ( I was stuck in a hotel room with no doctors over Xmas!) and could easily fetch something black out of the skin. It is not a hair. I hope to get a lab. to identify this under a microscope tomorrow ..and shall go to a doctor and request a blood test. On day 5 yesterday I decided to cut open the blister on the other arm,a thicker/tougher blister that wasn’t breaking on its own. I was afraid there might be eggs or larvae feasting on the lymph and waitng to hatch or whatever.
There is no pus, and no blood. It is all happening (touch wood) between in in the layers of skin, albeit skin that is much thickened by the whole development.
Two bites, one on each arm, developing simultaneously, I repeat.
Does this fit any pattern you know? Spider? Another arachnid (some kind of mite?)
I’m sure the doctor tomorrow won’t have any answers except to treat any possible infection (or superinfection)
A very interesting site in any case. Thanks.
Carol
I have been bittem by a spider and im not sur what one it was i have had a few syptoms and looked some spiders up i live in australia and the most common spiders are
-Red backs
– White Tail
– Huntsmen
my syptoms are
– Vomiting
-Tiredness
-Headaches
-stiff muscles
-muscle spasms
-fever
Pictures of the bites.
I think I have a few different spider bits on my forehead. 2 of the ones in the same area have formed what looks like a giant welt on my head. The other ones look like tinier welts. I have no clue what to do.
Hello, my name is Ashley my story is very similar to Racine. and i also live in Florida. I have had this bite for maybe 5-7 days. at first i thought it was just a cut or a scrape from me being clumsy as usual… but then i showed my boyfriend and he said it looked like a spider bite… so, i tried to pop it and only blood cane out. it is turning purple now and i really don’t know what to do, neither does my mother. i am in excruciating pain 24/7… and lately it as been throbbing and i have been in worse pain than before… please help me… i would appreciate it sooo much!!!
Thank you!
Ashley
Hi. I live west of Sacramento. The other day I noticed a red patch on the inside of my elbow, about the size of a quarter. It had one prominate red spot in the middle and little red bumps all around it and some bruising around it. It never hurt or itches. Does that sound like a spider bite? I wonder if it might be from a jumping spider or maybe a wolf spider. Thanks.
I was bit by a spider over two weeks ago. It blistered shortly after bite. I did not pay much attention to it. I now have a quarter round red, dryish looking sore. It is not wet or infected. Two days ago I got raised red dots all around the area, approx. the width of an open hand. The dots are getting redder and raising, but no warmth or indication of infection. It appears to be a reaction.
I do not have health insurance. Am I o.k., to wait on going to Doctors( money is tight). Or is this going to get worse and I am being foolish?
Thanks!
Diana
I sent a photo of the bug.
This isn’t a good picture. I took it w/my phone. I was walking and got sharp pain on my leg. I thought a wasp was stuck in my pants. I shook my pants and this red bug about 1/8″ long fell out. I killed and and kept it. It bit me a total of 8 times on my thigh. It made a red welt and hurt for about 15 minutes. I treated w/a antiseptic.
I live in southern California ,,, san juan Capistrano. We have had rain recently and live near a creek. Any ideas. First time in 10 years I have been bitten or seen this type of bug.
Thx.
Tami
i got bit by a spider about two weeks ago and there is two red dots and i just keep getting a itchy and a numbing sensation in just the part were i got bit. i’m going to the doctor next week but i would like to know what spider.
thanks so much,
courtney
I got bit today and its red and from far it looks like a needle was jabbed into my hand. the bitten hand trembles while my other hand doesn’t anyone know? Try to reply as soon as possible ;D
I live in South Korea and I might have gotten biten on my chest. There are no marks that it was a bite, but there was some discharge and swelling. I don’t know what else it would be.
I was bitten on my back in a very characteristic circular pattern – any idea what would do this? The radius is about a half an inch, making that circumference about an inch…my girfriend is very concerned and I am curious. Please let me know what you think. Thanks!
Bill
i live in Texas. my dad was bitten by a spider a few days ago. his leg that was bit is 2 times the size of the other, and the surrounding area is red and swollen about 3 inches around the bite,and his muscles are stiff to the point where he needs assistance walking. the pain started out just in his calf where he was bit, and the pain keeps traveling further up his leg, and now the pain has gone up to his back. he’s been to the doctor and is on antibiotics, which don’t seem to be helping. any idea as to what it would’ve been?
Hey, I was itching my pinky a lot until I found a white circle on it. I think it may be a spider bite, but I’m not sure! Please HELP me!!!
I have about 10 bites on my right leg. They appeared about 3 days ago. Since then they are red, painful, swollen and are now forming blisters. I have no idea if it was a spider bite or not, but I would like them to feel better or go away. Has anyone else had similar bites?
Hello. Last night, my feet were itching and burning and were generally really hot. My feet are normally ice cold so any time they get warm, they itch and burn and I wake up. Well, I went to scratch my foot and felt a real sharp, intense pain on my second toe. I was half-asleep so I figured that I had just stabbed myself with my finger nail and I went right back to sleep.
The itching and burning only got worse. I woke up today, to go to the dentist, and every toe on my left foot (where the pain was) is swollen, really red(sometimes kind of purple), sensitive to any sort of touch or movement. It hurt to walk. When I came home, I figured maybe I’d gotten a small case of frostbite due to my house being so cold. I took a warm bath, not too hot so not to make the frostbite worse. It got a little better, and I put on warm socks. The sensitivity has died down a little bit and I can move them but not a lot. The swelling is still there and the redness/sometimes purpleness is still there.
On the toe I felt pain, there is a little red circle mark- kind of like ones when you prick yourself but not bad enough to bleed, just the blood raises up. It hasn’t been twenty four hours but the pain and itchiness and everything is driving me nuts. With the mark, my mother suggested it might be a bite. I live in West Virginia and in my home, we have all sorts of bugs. Any suggestions?
I went camping at thanksgiving, woke up Sat night with intense itching in left arm, noticed 2 bumps in the morning.
It’s been 3 days, there is no pain, but the redness and itching are worsening.
I’m in South East TX, do you think it could be brown recluse?
I recently fell asleep on my leather couch. And when I awoke a few hours later, I found that under the sweatshirt that I had been wearing was a itchy bug bite. I am not sure if it is a spider bite or not, it has not swollen up red yet. But after leaving it alone for a few hours it has gone down some and is not as itchy as before. But the main problem is now on my inner thigh I think I have had an encounter with something poisonous. My inner thigh is in pain and the skin has thinned as if the muscle tissue behind it has become a liquid. I don’t see any blistering or swelling, and no black,white or even red spots. Any ideas besides going to an emergency room would be helpful.
I have what I believe is a spider bite, It is on the “palm-side” of my finger and it’s reddish purple with like 8 or 9 white spots that kind of look like little pus balls. I was bitten while asleep so I did not see what bit me. Can anyone help me figure out what it is?
okay I was in my room and there was a spider about size of a quarter on my tan jacket,and the spider was tan and it looked like it was trying to blend in. It had white markings on the legs.
any idea of what it was?
i got bitten by something on my leg (like on the back side of my leg). about 4 – 5 days ago. and its a little red dot with a bruise around it, and at times itchy. it hurts when i walk. i don’t know if it’s a spider bite. but i read some of the stories on here. and it seems to be symptoms of a spider bite. i am very scared now, after reading these stories. is there anything i can do. i don’t want to go to the doctors. i don’t have money. i just now put some benadryl. please email me back. at immmjay @ hotmail . com
Okay so I live in New York City and I had never seen a huge spider here. So I did not think it was real and I thought it was a toy. So I went to touch it and I got a big bite on my hand. Anyway It was pretty serios so I went to the hospital. Then the doctor said that it was the first time he ever say something like it. And now I still have the mark but let me just say I alomost died. And now I’m doing a research paper for school and now I’m not scared of spiders anymore. :D
Yesterday I started scratching my arm and later on that day I noticed it was a bite that I was scratching. I’m not sure if its a spider bite. The bite was itchy and sore. Now today the bite has spread up my arm and kind of over my elbow and its still itchy and sore. What should I do?
I got bitten 2 years ago – several times, brown spider- treated immediately with Bicarb/vinegar dressings – the bites were alrming for weeks- 2 years later I still have small bumps where the bites were- I’d like to know what that means, they don’t look like scars, just feel like small bumps
-Liz in Kensington, England
Should I look for it? Is it still alive? What kinda spider do the bites look liker? Will I die suddenly? How should I clean the bites?
I live in Ohio only a half an hour or less away from the capital so I don’t live in a woodsy area, my bedroom is right under a tree though. I’ve been seeing a lot of spiders in are home lately, mostly in my room. My dad is an exterminator and says it’s because it’s winter or well getting colder they’re coming in to find shelter, which makes sense. I mostly see these clear little yellowish white ones dime sized, they almost look clear, there was an incident when I seen a fast brown one the size of a Ritz Cracker, than a few black ones quarter sized.
I’m paranoid so I usually see and kill the spider right away (yes, I kill them) but today I was about to get in the shower and noticed little vampire bites on my hip, they didn’t look very old. They were blooded over and a little crusted, the blood wasn’t very brown and the area still red. I have hopes I got them while in the living room where I was most of the day, instead of thinking the horrifying thought of a spider being in my bed and it’s now somewhere.
I was on the floor taking pictures of my niece and nephew with my new early Christmas present before I got in the shower, and if I was bitten in the living room I didn’t feel any stinging or itching, no slight burn or the sensation of crawling. I may have been bitten in my bed, even now though they don’t hurt or anything just raised like little pimples.
They look pretty spread apart so I think the spider may be large in side or the fangs are just more separated than I thought, I sleep with no shirt on so it makes perfect sense that I rolled over on it maybe while I was asleep.