Tim and Tina Bradish of Muskegon, Michigan love relaxing up north. However their latest trip near Sleeping Bear Dunes has been anything but relaxing.
Tina Bradish noticed two small spider bites on her arm, "When I first noticed it, it just itched."
She thinks she knows when and where she was bitten by a spider, "Just moving our wood pile." Then the area on her arm near the two small bites turned dark red and started to swell, "It was stretching my skin so far that I could not stand the pain."
Doctors commended Tina for getting the bites checked out as quick as she did. Still there is irreversible damage. "My skin started dying," Bradish adds. "I probably will just have a scar."
Bradish learned what caused the injury during one of her four trips to the hospital. "It started moving up my arm, and that is when we went back to the emergency room and they told me I got bit by a brown recluse."
A brown recluse spider can grow to about the size of a quarter but even smaller ones have a bite that can be devastating even deadly.
The brown recluse spider is usually found in warm southern states. Bradish says "At first we did not believe them, we said that is a down south thing and they said no they are here and they are just not as big."
Northern Michigan campgrounds are busy in the summer with campers from out-of-state. "So many people from out of state it could have hitched a ride."
Bradish isn't dwelling on how the spider got into her woodpile, she just wants others to be aware that they're here, and to be safe, adding "If you notice anything, get it checked out."
Entomologists are undecided on if the spiders' home range is expanding or if the ones found in Michigan were brought to the state.
In Tennessee, the spiders are widespread. They're more commonly found in Middle Tennessee, but their population is on the rise in most of East Tennessee as well according to pest control experts.
The spiders are about medium size, and can be readily identified by their sandy brown color and the dark violin shape on the front portion of its body.
Experts said the spider is likely to live in homes more than many people realize, due to their secluded nature. Exterminating the spiders is tricky, however, because they hide in nooks and crannies, often making glue traps more effective than pesticides.
If you do find Brown Recluse in your home, your best move may be to call the professionals.