ECONOMIC AND MEDICAL IMPORTANCE 253 



Single instances from many far northern states, such as Maine, Ver- 

 mont, and Minnesota, reflect the paucity of black widow fauna in 

 those areas. A total of 55 deaths was recorded, about 4 per cent of 

 the total number of bites. This percentage of fatality is low, but 

 would have been even lower had all the cases of spider bite been 

 available for record. Many people who are bitten are not sufficiently 

 affected to receive medical treatment; therefore, while fatal cases are 

 usually reported, nonfatal ones do not often find their way into the 

 records. It is also known that some of the deaths were the result 

 of improper treatment, such as the administration of alcoholic 

 potions, or even abdominal operations performed by physicians who 

 erred in their diagnosis. 



Without wishing to belittle the importance of even a single 

 fatality from the bite of the black widow, it is nevertheless obvious 

 that the medical significance of this animal has been overemphasized. 

 In 1934 the spider became notorious overnight when an intemperate 

 press sank to ludicrous depths in disseminating its exploits to a 

 gullible public. Ridiculous statements were made, some with a germ 

 of truth but most fictional, and soon the black widow became 

 Public Enemy Number One. The wave of notoriety has now sub- 

 sided, and the hour-glass spider has retired to an obscurity in keep- 

 ing with its slight importance in the lives of most North Americans. 



The high toxicity of the black widow's venom is now well 

 established. The claim that it is the most highly toxic among all 

 venomous creatures is probably correct. As compared with the 

 venom of the prairie rattlesnake, which is largely a hematoxic 

 poison, it is about fifteen times as potent on a dry-weight basis. 

 Because of the far greater amount of venom injected into the victim, 

 however, the rattlesnake is much more dangerous than the black 

 widow. It is reputed to kill from 15 to 25 per cent of its victims- 

 six times as high a mortality as is usually awarded to the spider. 

 Each year about 1500 snakebites from all varieties are recorded in 

 the United States, and approximately 5 per cent result in fatality. 

 Thus, in a single year poisonous snakes account for as many bites 

 as and kill more people than are credited to the black widow in 

 more than two hundred. The average person's chances of dying 

 from snakebite are about the same as being struck by lightning. 

 The chance of dying from a spider bite is considerably less. 



The medical importance of the black widow is not sufficiently 

 great to warrant its designation as a menace in any part of the 

 United States. In the northern states, where the spiders are less 



