Latrodectus variolus, the Northern black widow spider

Black widow spider

Latrodectus mactans, the Southern black widow, is a highly venomous species of spider in the genus Latrodectus. They are well known for the distinctive black and red coloring of the female of the species and for the fact that she will occasionally eat her mate after reproduction. The species is...

or Northern widow, is a venomous spider species of the Latrodectus genus in the Theridiidae

Theridiidae

Theridiidae is a large family of spiders, also known as the tangle-web spiders, cobweb spiders and comb-footed spiders. The diverse family includes over 2200 species in over 100 genera) of three-dimensional space-web-builders found throughout the world...

 family. The population is closely related to the Southern Black Widow, Latrodectus mactans, and the Western Black Widow, Latrodectus hesperus

Latrodectus hesperus

Latrodectus hesperus, the Western black widow spider or Western widow, is a venomous spider species found in western regions of North America. The female's body is 14–16 millimeters in length and is black, often with an hourglass shaped red mark on the lower abdomen. This "hourglass" mark can be...

, of the genus.

It is a common find in Middle Atlantic States (New Jersey

New Jersey

New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...

, Delaware

Delaware

Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...

, Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

). During the April-May mating season, it can travel northbound along the coast to as far as Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

. It also occurs in Connecticut

Connecticut

Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

in late Summer.