Are Ther Black Widow Spiders At The Jersey Shore?

This is the stuff nightmares are made of. Of course, this info would come out right around Halloween. If you were one of the many Jersey Shore residents who slept well thinking black widow spiders are someone else's problem and not ours, you better think again. Many Jersey Shore residents will tell you all about their encounters with the Black Widow spider right here in Monmouth & Ocean Counties.

Getty Images

Listen to Lou Russo mornings on 94.3 The Point and download our free 94.3 The Point app.

It might come as a complete shock to you that Jersey Shore residents have seen black widows in our area on a pretty regular basis. I learned this when I was on a Toms River & Neighbors community page.

Someone snapped a photo of a black widow in their Toms River backyard, and the number of locals who were not shocked at all is a little bone chilling. There were a lot of 'me too's" and "I've been seeing them for years'.

And it's not just Toms River. We have had residents claim to see them in Jackson, Tuckerton and Manahawkin as well. And although many residents say they have witnessed them, experts say they are not very common in New Jersey

So, are people misidentifying here or are we really in Black Widow country here in Monmouth & Ocean Counties?

Here's what Arrow NJ has to say...

Black widow spiders like to hide in furniture and stored boxes as well. But they don't have to be transported from another state. We have localized populations right here in New Jersey.

That's just great. Another thing for us to worry about, as if we don't have enough already. But there is good news. Experts say the Black Widow would much rather scurry away from you than try to bite you.

And they are pretty easy to identify, with that red hourglass on their round abdomen. Here's what to do if you do get bitten by a Black Widow, accordiing to USA Spiders. Get immediate medical attention although most Black Widow bites are "usually uncomfortable but not deadly".

They go on to say that 10X the people in the U.S. die from bee and wasp stings than do from spider bites.But please, still be careful. Don't mess with a Black Widow.

I am still shaken a bit by this revelation. You may have known this for years, but I didn't. Still, I'm going to put the for sale sign I grabbed when I first heard this spider news in my garage and see how things go.

If Deadly Animals Are Your Thing - WATCH OUT: These are the deadliest animals in the world

LOOK: Here are the pets banned in each state

Because the regulation of exotic animals is left to states, some organizations, including The Humane Society of the United States, advocate for federal, standardized legislation that would ban owning large cats, bears, primates, and large poisonous snakes as pets.

Read on to see which pets are banned in your home state, as well as across the nation.

LOOK: Stunning animal photos from around the world

From grazing Tibetan antelope to migrating monarch butterflies, these 50 photos of wildlife around the world capture the staggering grace of the animal kingdom. The forthcoming gallery runs sequentially from air to land to water, and focuses on birds, land mammals, aquatic life, and insects as they work in pairs or groups, or sometimes all on their own.