Bugs and spiders in Texas

What to watch for in Texas

The southern black widow has the most records of the four, followed by the western black widow, the brown recluse and the brown widow. A bite from an adult female black widow can cause strong muscle pain. Brown widow bites are usually milder, but the spider is easy to mistake for a young black widow. The Arizona bark scorpion is established only on the far west Texas edge, and its sting can be dangerous for young children and older adults. Northern black widow records exist, but it is not known to live here.

Four ticks are established: the American dog tick, lone star tick, blacklegged tick and brown dog tick. The American dog tick and lone star tick have the most records, while the brown dog tick lives mostly on dogs and can breed indoors. Yellow fever mosquitoes and red imported fire ants are also established. Poison Help (1-800-222-1222) takes calls about stings and bites that worry you.

Through the year

Spring

Eastern carpenter bees hover around the house roughly April through June, black carpenter ant swarmers appear from about March, and lone star tick adults are most active in April through June.

Summer

American cockroaches are most often seen in summer, fire ants tend to come indoors during very hot, dry spells or floods, and yellow fever mosquitoes bite through the warm months.

Fall

Asian lady beetles move in during October and November, boxelder bugs arrive from late August, and yellow garden spiders and spotted orbweavers are at their most noticeable.

Winter

Brown dog ticks can stay active indoors year-round, German and brown-banded cockroaches live inside in every month, and southern house spiders are around year-round in the South.