How to Avoid This Common Misdiagnosis: What A Brown Recluse Bite Looks Like

Doctors and the public incorrectly diagnose countless suspicious red bumps and rashes as spider bites every year.

Of these, much of the blame falls on the brown recluse, a somewhat drab, venomous spider native to parts of the U.S. Yet, brown recluse bites are actually quite rare, says Rick Vetter, a retired professor of entomology at the University of California Riverside. 

These misdiagnoses not only unfairly demonize spiders minding their own business, but they can also distract from other serious, treatable medical conditions that are the real cause of symptoms.