Desert Recluse
See a doctorLoxosceles deserta
The desert recluse is the southwest's genuine Loxosceles, and it explains why 'no recluses in California' is a slight overstatement. It lives in undisturbed desert habitat — rodent burrows, packrat nests, under rocks and debris — well away from most people, and bites are rare. It is not found in coastal or urban California, where the great majority of alleged recluse bites are reported.
If you think you were bitten
- Most suspected spider bites are not spider bites. Studies of patients presenting with a “spider bite” repeatedly find that the large majority are bacterial skin infections — frequently MRSA — which need antibiotics rather than reassurance. A spreading, painful, pus-filled sore is far more likely to be an infection than a spider.
- Wash it, ice it, and watch it. Clean the area with soap and water, apply a cold pack, and keep an eye on it.
- Get medical care if the wound spreads or darkens, if you develop cramping, sweating, fever or severe abdominal pain, or if you are confident it was a widow or a recluse.
- Bring the spider only if it is already dead and to hand. Do not go looking for it. Doctors treat symptoms, not species.
In the US, the Poison Help line is 1-800-222-1222. This site is a reference, not medical advice.
Quick facts
- Bite risk
- Venom is comparable to the brown recluse's, but encounters are far less frequent. A suspected bite warrants medical assessment.
- Size
- Body 6–11 mm. Same size as a brown recluse — body about a pea, legspan about a quarter.
- Appearance
- Pale sandy tan, usually lighter than a brown recluse, with a faint or nearly absent violin mark. Legs are plain and unbanded.
- Web
- Loose, irregular retreat webs under rocks, in rodent burrows and in packrat middens.
- Found in
- desert, woodpile, garage
- Family
- Sicariidae
- Range
- 5 US states
How to identify a desert recluse
- Six eyes in three pairs, like all recluses.
- Plain unbanded legs and a uniform pale sandy body.
- Desert habitat, typically away from settlement.
- Violin mark is often faint or missing entirely.
How it behaves
Nocturnal, secretive and strongly associated with undisturbed desert cover. Rarely enters homes, unlike the brown recluse.
What the desert recluse is confused with
One observation settles each of these.
Ranges do not overlap. Brown recluses are a midwest and south-central species; desert recluses are southwestern.