Other Latrodectus mactans

I had just purchased a nice round L. mactans from a reptile show and was moving her to her enclosure when I decided to let her climb up my finger so I could move her. I fully believed she wouldn’t bite me. After all, I have handled wild black widows and they simply climbed on me like any other cobweb spider. For whatever reason, as she started feeling my left middle finger, she pulled her head towards it and I felt a mild sting. She got me right on the upper side of my first knuckle, which is unfortunately the only part of a persons finger with thin enough skin for these gals to bite through. I roughly brushed her into her enclosure (luckily she was unhurt) and waited for the inevitable horrible pain and muscle cramps to commence. After 3 hours, nothing. Perhaps a mild stiffness in my finger, but that may have been placebo. I ended up just going to work, where I did have some mild abdominal cramping and diarrhea. This may have been due to the large McDonald’s meal I ate before work, however. The next day you would never have known I was bitten. I suspect this was a dry bite.

Barely perceptible stiffness in my middle finger, very mild abdominal cramping and diarrhea