A brown recluse’s venom can destroy blood vessels, tissue, and nerves. As a result, the skin tissue can die, a phenomenon called skin necrosis.

In the mature brown recluse spider as well as some other species of recluse spiders, the dark violin marking is well defined, with the neck of the violin pointing toward the bulbous abdomen.

Brown recluses have six eyes instead of the usual eight. These eyes are arranged in a horizontal row of 3 pairs on the face.

Only a few other spiders have 3 pairs of eyes arranged this way, such as the Spitting Spiders (scytodids). Brown Recluse Spiders can be distinguished from scytodids as recluse spiders abdomens have no coloration pattern nor do their legs, which also lack spines.