All spiders have toxins in their venom; not all toxins are dangerous to humans. Apparently most humans *are* susecptible to the brown recluse, but in varying degrees. I've seen the brown recluse in my home, among several other species. Can't always tell which is which but I can tell that some are different from others. One species living in and around my home grows very large. One night, I'd come home from a drunk, and passed out with the lights on; sleeping on a mattress on the floor. I awoke from the pain of a bite, looked at my arm and saw a small amount of blood. Just at the edge of the bed, I saw a *big* spider scurry off. In my stupor, I deciced to go back to sleep; worst case, I simply wouldn't wake up. But the next day comes, bidden or not. Now, I used to have these embarrasing warts on my elbows and underside of my forearms. A couple of days later, while showering, I noticed these warts were swollen up. Strange; but I didn't give it any more thought. A week later, I looked again, and the warts were gone. Somewhere in my basement lives a species of spider that contains a miracle wart cure in its venom. If only I could determine which one, I'd be rich! I do have lots of webs in some of the classic EQ I have down in the basement (notably the SOL). But I've found that letting the ants and spiders have their way keeps the roach population in control. Much better than "Better living through Chemistry". -dq