Tipp City Pest Professional Documents Miami Valley’s First Official Northern Black Widow
Story by Matt Bayman, Photograph by Ken Hickerson
NEW CARLISLE — A Tipp City pest professional has documented what an Ohio State University entomologist confirmed as a northern black widow, marking the first confirmed record of the spider in Clark County, according to the professional.

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   Ken Hickerson, owner of Tipp City Pest Solutions, photographed the spider (pictured below) Sept. 14 while working in New Carlisle. Recognizing that the find was unusual for the area, Hickerson contacted an entomologist at Ohio State University for verification.

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   The entomologist confirmed the identification and told Hickerson, “You reported the first confirmed northern black widow record for Clark County, OH.”

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   The entomologist also checked documented records for the surrounding region and determined the nearest previously documented black widow was approximately 50 miles away. Based on that review, Hickerson said the observation represents the first documented black widow record in the Miami Valley.

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   The observation has been added to the public iNaturalist database. View the iNaturalist observation

   Hickerson said the discovery occurred during a routine pest-control visit and that he contacted an expert rather than attempting to make the identification himself.

  “I thought this might make an interesting local story because the discovery happened while I was simply doing my regular work in New Carlisle,” Hickerson said. “I recognized that something was unusual, contacted an expert rather than guessing, and ended up contributing a new species record for the area.”