Everything You Need To Know About Spiders In Muskegon, MI
Spider control can be challenging. Spiders enter your home looking for food and shelter, especially during the cold season. Some spiders get trapped inside accidentally, while others like to make your home their personal residence where they can hunt and breed. Spiders are great at hiding, so their nests can be difficult to locate if you’re unfamiliar with their habits. They will make themselves at home in a dark and dusty attic where they will hunt for food, and look for secure places to hide their eggs. For effective pest control in Muskegon, give us a call today.
Frequently Asked Questions About Spiders
Are spiders beneficial?
Despite their bad reputation, spiders are extremely useful in our gardens and ecosystem. They are nature’s top pest control agents. Spiders aid in controlling other common pests like mosquitoes, cockroaches, grasshoppers, and flies. All of these insects have been known to devastate crops, gardens, and homes. In fact, it’s estimated that worldwide, spiders eat 400-800 million metric tons of insects every year
Chemical control can only do so much. Spiders can aid in limiting the population of the pests and can do more! Spiders significantly decrease the onset of several diseases such as malaria from mosquitoes and typhoid from house flies. In addition to being crop protectors and disease defenders, spiders’ venom is currently being studied by scientists as a way to help to treat arthritis. Medical applications that also involve the use(s) of spider silk and spider venom are increasing in number.
Are spiders dangerous?
Most common house spiders pose very little to no threat to humans. A house spider may bite if it feels threatened. A house spider bite is essentially harmless to humans. At most you may experience a minor irritation like a small itchy red bump. We are much more dangerous to spiders than they are to us. Bites are extremely rare among the few dangerous species like Black Widows or recluses. If you are unsure about a spider you find roaming around your property; you can reach out to our professional home pest control and commercial pest control experts for help!
Will a spider attack me?
Humans are far more dangerous to spiders than spiders are to humans. Spiders are not out to get you and actively try to avoid humans. Most spiders don’t bite, and many couldn’t bite you if they wanted to. Even if you are bitten by a spider it’s very unlikely you get anything more than a small itchy red bump. 98% of spiders are harmless to humans. Even the dangerous few like black widows and brown recluses rarely bite. And of those bites very few cause serious injury. In the United States each year, about 2,200 people report being bitten by a black widow, but most do not need medical treatment. A number of spider bites are “dry” bites that have no venom injected. In the United States, no deaths due to black widows have been reported to the American Association of Poison Control Centers since 1983.
How do I get rid of spiders?
A common household item that will help keep spiders away from your home is vinegar.
- Half vinegar & water spray
- Spray directly on spiders, webs, and in places you find them
Another way to get rid of spiders is by keeping you home clean.
- Spiders like to hide in nooks and crannies
- Use plastic containers instead of cardboard (harder to climb in)
- Regular dusting and vacuuming
What smells do spiders hate?
- Peppermint Oil
- Tea Tree
- Lavender
- Rose
- Cinnamon
Common West Michigan Spiders
Most spiders you find in Michigan are harmless. These are a few notable species.
Brown Recluse In Michigan (Venomous)
The Brown Recluse in Michigan is known for the violin-shaped mark on its back. They are not actually native to Michigan being unable to survive temperatures below 40 degrees. They are known to hitch rides on vehicles from more southern states and often find their way here during the warmer months. Sometimes referred to as the ‘violin spider’, the Brown Recluse is roughly the size of a quarter when fully grown and loves to reside in dark, secluded areas like garages, trash cans, old tires, and attics. The Brown Recluse not only captures prey in their webs, but will also go out and hunt! They eat cockroaches, crickets, flies, and other spiders. For the most effective spider control, get rid of what the brown recluse is hunting and you will succeed in getting rid of these spiders. Bites are very rare due to the extreme shyness of this spider.
Wolf Spider in Michigan
(Mildly Venomous)
Another spider control species in Michigan is the Wolf Spider. It has a sizeable family, and most of them are large, dark, and active. Unlike most spiders, Wolf spiders don’t spin webs to catch their prey. They prefer to hunt for prey with strong fangs and exceptional eyesight. Some species will chase them down, while others prefer to ambush their prey when it walks by. Their color varies depending on the environment and they are readily identifiable by the presence of hair on their legs and body. Wolf Spiders are known for being agile and speedy hunters. A bite from a Wolf Spider has caused some adverse health in humans, but is not lethal, even if left untreated.
The Northern Black Widow (Venomous)
The Northern Black Widow in Michigan is most commonly found in the lower western peninsula of Michigan. Their entire bodies are completely black, with the females having a classic red hourglass shape on their abdomen. Males will not have the hourglass shape, but will still have a red or yellow-black band on their abdomen. Only a female bite is harmful to humans. They live outdoors in old stumps, wood piles and hollowed logs. You may find them inside of crawl spaces, garage corners, and other dark areas. Black Widows are very shy and do their best to avoid humans. Bite victims only have a 1% mortality rate despite their venom being 15 times stronger than a rattlesnake.
The Jumping Spider
The Jumping Spider in Michigan is one of the largest spiders found in North America. They have incredible eyesight compared to other species, especially because they can see in true color – just like humans – and that helps make them superior hunters. The Jumping Spider can leap up to 25 times its own body length and can be identified by its unique eye pattern and hairy body. They are commonly found in grasslands, woodlands, and gardens, but can find their way into homes, barns, and other residential structures. They eat bollworms, webworms, stink bugs, mosquitoes, and a wide range of arthropods. For effective spider control of the Jumping Spider, try to cut out their favorite food sources and you won’t have a problem with them.
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