The Western Black Widow spider

It may be in California, but it is hardly laid back and has a highly venomous bite. Believe it or not, this was taken at my sister's house in Carlsbad, California (near San Diego). When she told me that they had some, I insisted on looking all around in the evening until we found some. Unfortunately, the only camera we had available was a little instamatic - which is why the quality is so poor, but it was great to see what is probably the most famous spider. By the way, as to the famous "eating the male" behaviour, there is an evolutionarly explanation of this which I have described here: