Western Black Widow spider - poisonous!
Hah - you don't need any warning to keep your hands away from this spider! This is a female Western Black Widow (Latrodectus hesperus, Theridiidae) spider on her cobweb-like web. I don't see them very often, but I know they're out there - a good reason not to stick your hands into dark places! A couple of years ago I found a male of the species which looks quite different - see this photo and this photo. The second of these photos shows that the male also has a red hourglass-shaped mark under the abdomen, but it's not nearly so impressive as the lady's mark. Surely the whole point of that red hourglass is a warning to keep away! (San Marcos Pass, 4 May 2018)
Western Black Widow spider - poisonous!
Hah - you don't need any warning to keep your hands away from this spider! This is a female Western Black Widow (Latrodectus hesperus, Theridiidae) spider on her cobweb-like web. I don't see them very often, but I know they're out there - a good reason not to stick your hands into dark places! A couple of years ago I found a male of the species which looks quite different - see this photo and this photo. The second of these photos shows that the male also has a red hourglass-shaped mark under the abdomen, but it's not nearly so impressive as the lady's mark. Surely the whole point of that red hourglass is a warning to keep away! (San Marcos Pass, 4 May 2018)