As their name implies, recluse spiders are generally shy. They spin nondescript white or grayish webs, where they may hide during the day. They are predators of insects and other arthropods, known to wander around houses looking for prey. Their color varies from orange-yellow to dark brown. The brown recluse s most distinguishing characteristics are its eye pattern and markings on the back.
Recluse spiders have six eyes arranged in three pairs in a semicircle on the forepart of the head.
Uncommon in spiders, this eye pattern helps separate recluse spiders from similar species. The eyes also form the base of a violin-shaped marking on the back. The violin marking may be conspicuous or blend with the background color. One other group of spiders, the spitting spiders, Scytodes , has a similar eye arrangement. A spitting spider has long, spindly, banded legs and a spotted pattern on its cephalothorax, the front body region.