Are there brown recluses in Alaska?
Short answer
No
No. There are no open records of the brown recluse from Alaska, and the state is outside its range.
Brown recluses across the US
- Lives here
- Rare records
- Gone
- Not here
How to recognize one
Brown recluse Loxosceles reclusa
- Dark violin shape on the back, neck of the violin points to the rear
- Six eyes in three pairs (most spiders have eight)
- Plain tan abdomen and legs with no bands or spines
Medically significant. Most bites heal without trouble; a few cause a slow-healing wound. Many wounds blamed on recluses outside their range turn out to be other conditions.
Often mistaken for brown recluses
- Brown Recluse vs Wolf Spider Wolf spider: harmless, lives in Alaska
- Brown Recluse vs Hobo Spider Hobo spider: harmless
- Brown Recluse vs Cellar Spider Cellar spider: harmless, lives in Alaska
- Brown Recluse vs Southern House Spider Southern house spider: harmless
Questions
Are there brown recluses in Alaska?
No. There are no open records of the brown recluse from Alaska, and the state is outside its range.
What do brown recluses look like?
Dark violin shape on the back, neck of the violin points to the rear. Six eyes in three pairs (most spiders have eight). Plain tan abdomen and legs with no bands or spines.
Could a wound be a recluse bite anyway?
Doctors and spider researchers warn that many wounds blamed on recluses in states without them are other conditions, often skin infections. A doctor should look at any wound that spreads or does not heal.