Shown here posed on a quarter for scale, the Brown Recluse Spider is apparently biting people at random in NYC (specifically Brooklyn). Those who know me best know I am no big fan of the spider, one of natures creepiest crawlies.
The brown recluse is a weirdo even amongst spiders. Whereas most spiders have eight eyes, recluses only have 6. Perhaps the lack of those extra two eyes makes them more aggressive to overcompensate? They like to hide in shoes, sheets, towels, well...anything really and bite when they feel threatened. In all fairness, it seems brown recluse spider bites are actually rare, and can actually be a misdiagnosed case of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, which I have chosen not to look up, dear readers. But when they do bite, the bites can cause necrosis, which causes skin cells to die among other things. Thanks a lot tiny venomous spiders.
Aside from two fewer eyes than most spiders and secret ninja attacks, there really isn't much else of interest going on here. I was going to use the Goliath Bird Eater as my first spider entry, but Hannah's reported epidemic (or shoddy medical diagnosis???) of spider bites meant this was news that NEEDED TO BE TOLD.
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