Mediterranean black widow
Latrodectus tredecimguttatus
Overview
Mediterranean black widow in Georgia
The Mediterranean black widow (Latrodectus tredecimguttatus) is a spider in the family Theridiidae. Members of this family usually spin irregular, tangled webs, not classic round orb webs. The current scientific name is Latrodectus tredecimguttatus. Georgian names include ყარაყურთი and შავი ქვრივი; English names include Mediterranean black widow and European black widow. The southern black widow (Latrodectus mactans) is a different species found in North America. In older literature, some Caucasus records appear under the name Latrodectus mactans or as one of its subspecies. Under modern classification, the species confirmed in Georgia is Latrodectus tredecimguttatus. Karakurt occurs in Georgia. It is widespread across the Caucasus, but that does not mean it is equally common in every region of the country. Female body length is about 7–15 mm; males are about 4–7 mm. Females are usually larger and easier to notice. The venom is neurotoxic. A bite can cause latrodectism, a set of symptoms that may require medical care. IUCN has not assessed the species, and it is not on Georgia’s 2014 Red List.
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Gallery
Mediterranean black widow in photos
Photo: K. Korlević · Wikimedia Commons
Croatia ·
Photo: Armen Seropian
Tbilisi ·
Georgia field photo
Photo: Zakro Songulashvili
Marneuli ·
Georgia field photo
Photo: Uros Vezenkovic
Photo: Irakli Dolidze
Rustavi ·
Georgia field photo
Photo: Julien
Photo: Armen Seropian
Tbilisi, Nutsubidzis Plato ·
Georgia field photo
Photo: Ioane Rostiashvili
Lisi Lake ·
Georgia field photo
Photo: Sphoo · Wikimedia Commons
Corte, Corsica ·
Photo: K. Korlević · Wikimedia Commons
Croatia ·
Photo: 0959kedi · Wikimedia Commons
İzmir, Turkey ·
Photo: Giorgi Iankoshvili
Chachuna ·
Georgia field photo
Identification
How to identify Mediterranean black widow
Karakurt is a small, glossy black spider with a rounded, almost globose abdomen. The female often has red dorsal spots, although some individuals may be almost entirely black. The web is irregular and tangled, not a round orb.
At species level female body length is about 7–15 mm (Nentwig et al.); male about 4–7 mm. Legs are not included. There is no separate Georgian measurement series on this page.
The female has a black, glossy cephalothorax and black legs. The abdomen is rounded, almost globose. Red spots often appear on the back, usually arranged in three longitudinal rows. The scientific name tredecimguttatus means “thirteen-spotted”. The spots are not always bright red; they may be orange or yellowish. In some individuals they are reduced or absent, and the abdomen can look entirely black. A red mark may also be present on the underside, but it does not always resemble the hourglass mark known from the American black widow. The male is much smaller than the female and often has whitish spots.
In Georgia, adult females often have reduced or completely lost red spots. In that case, only a thin white margin may remain where the spots were. A completely black female therefore does not rule out karakurt.
Karakurt spins an irregular, tangled web, usually near the ground. Its web does not resemble the round Argiope orb with a white zigzag. An adult female often hides in a retreat rather than sitting in the centre of the web.
Another species of Latrodectus, Latrodectus pallidus, was confirmed in Georgia in 2024. It was recorded in Chachuna, Dedoplistskaro Municipality, at about 648 m. This is the first confirmed record of the species in the Caucasus. L. pallidus is easy to separate from karakurt: its abdomen is cream-coloured or whitish, not black. Latrodectus dahli is known in the Caucasus from Azerbaijan, but this source does not give a confirmed Georgian record. Karakurt can also be confused with the false black widow (Steatoda paykulliana), which also occurs in Georgia. It is usually brown and often has a red or yellow band at the front of the abdomen. That differs from karakurt’s glossy black, rounded abdomen and red spots. Reptiles.ge has a separate profile for the false black widow, while Latrodectus pallidus does not yet have one.
This atlas has separate profiles for the wasp spider (Argiope bruennichi) and the lobed argiope (Argiope lobata). Both spin orb webs and differ clearly from karakurt in appearance: they are larger, with banded or strongly lobed abdomens. Argiope and karakurt should not be confused.
Biology
Habitat, diet, behavior, and conservation
Habitat and range
Karakurt is mainly found in dry, open places: steppe, semi-desert shrubland, under stones and other objects, and in low vegetation. Species-level habitat descriptions include dunes, sandy and shingle areas, and dry low vegetation. This is a general species-level description, not a Georgian elevation belt measured separately. Confirmed Georgian records are known from Tbilisi, Gori, Aspindza, the Shiraki Valley, and the Eldari Valley. The atlas map therefore marks only regions where we have a specific record. For western Georgia, Adjara, Racha, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, Kvemo Kartli, and other regions, this page does not cite a specific record. That does not prove absence; it only means we do not add unconfirmed distribution to the map. A broad or abundant Caucasus occurrence does not mean the species occurs in every region or every elevation belt.
Diet
Karakurt mainly hunts insects and other arthropods. It catches prey in an irregular web, wraps it in silk, and then bites it. The diet of Georgian populations has not been studied separately, so this is the species’ general feeding pattern, not a measured Georgian menu. Karakurt should not be treated as a garden pest-control tool.
Behavior
The female usually hides in a web retreat rather than sitting in the centre of the web. Its web is irregular and often built near the ground, among stones and other objects or in low vegetation. Karakurt does not seek people out. Bites are mostly accidental, for example when a hand, clothing, or a shoe touches the spider. In Europe, such cases have been recorded very rarely in recent decades. Do not handle the spider. Eggs are kept in silk sacs. One photo on this page shows two such sacs, but that photo was taken in Turkey and does not represent a Georgian population. A full Georgian seasonal activity calendar is not established from the data available on this page.
Conservation
Karakurt has not been assessed by IUCN. It is not included in Georgia’s 2014 Red List; among arachnids, that list names the fen raft spider (Dolomedes plantarius) as vulnerable (VU). The size and trend of the Georgian population have not been assessed from the data available on this page. Do not catch wild spiders or touch individuals found in nature.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Short answers to the most important questions about Mediterranean black widow.
Yes. Karakurt (Latrodectus tredecimguttatus) is a confirmed species in Georgia. That does not mean it is equally distributed across every region of the country.
Named Georgian records are known from Tbilisi, Gori, Aspindza, the Shiraki Valley, and the Eldari Valley. It mainly occurs in dry, open places: steppe, under stones, and in low vegetation. For western Georgia and high mountain regions, this page does not cite specific records, so they are not marked on the map.
Karakurt is a small black spider with a rounded, almost globose abdomen. The back often has red spots, although some adult females may be entirely black. Its web is irregular and tangled. A cream-coloured or whitish abdomen points more toward Latrodectus pallidus. A yellow-and-black spider with an orb web is an Argiope, not a karakurt.
Female body length is about 7–15 mm, while males are about 4–7 mm. These measurements do not include the legs. A separate measurement series for Georgian populations is not available on this page.
No. Latrodectus mactans is a North American species, while the species confirmed in Georgia is Latrodectus tredecimguttatus. Older literature sometimes confused these names.
Karakurt has not been assessed by IUCN and is not included in Georgia’s 2014 Red List.
References
Sources
References
Sources
- World Spider Catalog — Latrodectus tredecimguttatus (Rossi, 1790)
- World Spider Catalog — Latrodectus mactans (Fabricius, 1775)
- World Spider Catalog — Latrodectus pallidus O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872
- Nentwig et al. 2026 — Spiders of Europe, Latrodectus tredecimguttatus
- Otto 2022 — Caucasian Spiders, Latrodectus tredecimguttatus
- Otto 2022 — Georgia country checklist
- Otto 2022 — Latrodectus dahli (Azerbaijan)
- Seropian et al. 2024 — CaBOL spiders of Georgia, Part III
- Nentwig et al. 2013 — Verified spider bites in Switzerland
- Isbister & White 2004 — Clinical consequences of spider bites
- საქართველოს მთავრობის დადგენილება №190 (2014) — წითელი ნუსხა
- Wikimedia Commons — female, İzmir (0959kedi, CC0)
- Wikimedia Commons — female with egg sacs, İzmir (0959kedi, CC0)
- Wikimedia Commons — female, Croatia (K. Korlević, public domain)
- Wikimedia Commons — habitus, Corsica (Sphoo, CC BY-SA 3.0)
- Wikimedia Commons — male, Croatia (K. Korlević, public domain)
Species profiles are compiled from peer-reviewed literature and established biodiversity databases, and are reviewed as new taxonomic and conservation data become available.
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