Image by Flickr user cordfishImage by 20080726spider.jpg If you see one of these guys hanging around, I don't recommend trying to make friends.

Brown widow spiders might not be that unusual in the Lowcountry, but when you find them all over your house, it can be a pretty frightening ordeal. That's the response some Summerville residents are having, after discovering the spiders all over their yard ... and garage ... and the outside of their home.

Not fun, to say the least. But luckily the solution is easy: A can of raid will get rid of the suckers, if that's what you're looking for. If you're more into living in harmony with the brown widow, well, the bite can cause delirium and fiery, torturous pain, but it only lasts 48 hours ...

From The Post and Courier:

Maryann Ferrara's house is crawling with them.

Webs and egg sacks dangle from the engine and undercarriage of her son's Camaro. One bulby female arches her legs threateningly when an onlooker gets too close, then scurries up the air intake. The spiders drop from the eaves of her porch, crawl on the rocker seat, the flower plants, the wind chime, even the statue of critter-loving St. Francis of Assisi.

"They especially like the shutters. Garbage cans, they love - they're under the lip where you put your hand. They're in the barbecue pit — you can see the egg sacks right there. They were actually on the air conditioner, which is bad because there's a gap into the house. They're on the windows. And I'm not going in the shed," she says.

The Post and Courier also has video coverage.

The Clemson Extension Home & Garden Information Center also has posted a nice little profile of the brown widow, if you'd like to find out more about it. It talks about habits, hatchlings, etc., and gives some tips on spider control, such as getting rid of webs and caulking or sealing openings into your house.