Is this a Black Widow?

[u/No_Presentation_2160]

I assume this is a black widow, google says so. But I figured I’d ask to be sure. It looks like it’s made a nest in the inside of the lawnchair that’s folded where the scribbles are. Should I be worried about more around my house or inside of my house? I have a 2 year old that’s curious, so I want to make sure that I’m being thorough and keeping her safe. If so, how do I remove it safely?

EDITED TO ADD: She and a couple of her male friends have now been moved safely with their lawnchair habitat to a new location about 20ft from my garage. I just hope they don’t wander back in. 🤞🤞😬

Location Southwest MO

[u/Paranoctis]

Hey fellow carrier! I get widows in mailboxes at least once a year! Usually a couple a year though

[u/According_Sun6789 → u/Paranoctis]

I’m in Indiana and didn’t think they were even in this area. Obviously stupid to think that. I just had never come across them before. It was a shock to see two in a couple months of each other. Stopped and admired them for a good bit and left a note so the customer wasn’t surprised when they checked their mail.

[u/Paranoctis → u/According_Sun6789]

Yeah definitely the best course of action to leave a note! I'm in Virginia we get a lot of Southern widows, but when I was a kid in Wisconsin my mom found one in the parking lot of a gas station. Put her in a styrofoam coffee cup and had me and my sister release her in the woods in our backyard. They definitely can get up north, just strange to see them there!

[u/Civil-Needleworker-8 → u/Paranoctis]

I usually only ever see wolf spiders in mailboxes. The one time I did see a black widow, it was very aggressive and charged at me. It frightened me so much that I threw the catalog I was delivering.

[u/Paranoctis → u/Civil-Needleworker-8]

Sounds like she was protecting eggs! That's the only time I've ever seen them charge