Surviving spiderlings disperse by ballooning. They spin a single silk thread which is caught by the wind, which carries them to a new location. When about one-third grown, they establish themselves in a protected place and build loosely woven webs. The spiders usually remain in their rather coarse, irregular, tangled webs for the rest of their lives. Over time they extend their webs and capture progressively larger prey.
Males eventually leave their webs to find females for mating.
Contrary to popular belief, most females do not normally eat the males after mating. This habit, found in a few species of widow spiders from other areas, gives the group its name. Bite symptoms If noticed at all, a widow spider bite may feel like a pin prick. Usually the bite location is indicated by a slight local swelling and two red spots surrounded by redness. The reaction is systemic and pain becomes intense in one to three hours, continuing for up to 48 hours.