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Photo#48283
Possible Steatoda? - Steatoda hespera

Possible Steatoda? - Steatoda hespera
Clark County, Ohio, USA
April 3, 2006
Size: estimating 6mm-10mm
Found this inside in the curtains. It had webbing over the curtain but I didn't get a good look at it. My intial impression was of a Widow however I knew they weren't indigenous to Ohio. I am leaning heavily towards Steatoda but am intrigued by the markings on the underside of the abdomen. These pictures are taken of it in alcohol so please excuse any blurriness. When alive the abdomen was held much higher over the thorax

Images of this individual: tag all
Possible Steatoda? - Steatoda hespera Possible Steatoda? - Steatoda hespera Possible Steatoda? - Steatoda hespera

Not a widow, but....
The northern widow (Latrodectus variolus) and the southern black widow (L. mactans) both occur in Ohio naturally. They just are not usually very common. This specimen does suggest the genus Steatoda, but I look forward to hearing from other, more knowledgeable arachnid experts:-) Nice images, certainly.

 
Images
Thank you Eric, It was a bit frustrating with my generic digital but using a flashlight seemed to help it's focus.

I never knew there were widows in Ohio. I thought we only had to deal with the lovely brown recluse

 
Maybe
S. hespera.

 
S. Hespera
Brilliant! I just wish I could find a reference that mentioned the interesting ventral abdomen markings. Thank you Jeff