Black Widow Tattoo Meaning, Designs & Ideas

From superheroes to scary movies, the black widow is a name and symbol that is used for many different powerful women. The black widow spider is cunning and vicious.

The female black widow has a reputation that precedes it and that plays into many of the stories and lore about this eight-legged spider. As scary and creepy as the black widow is, people still love to see it tattooed on their body.

The black widow tattoo says something about the person wearing it. Many people will assume there is a negative connotation associated with the black widow tattoo but that isn’t always the case. Many times, women will wear the black widow tattoo as a symbol of feminine power. We will get into why this is the case at a later point in this post, but you might see more women than men wearing the black widow tattoo.

In addition to talking about the meaning of the black widow tattoo, we will talk about some facts about the black widow spider, so you can get a better picture of why it has the reputation it has. The black widow spider is one of the most well-known spiders in the animal kingdom and you will understand why. We will also discuss some of the variations of the black widow tattoo and talk about what it means to the person wearing it.

About the Black Widow Spider

The black widow spider is mostly known for the red hourglass shape on the body of the female black widow. They get their name because they tend to eat the male after they are done mating, making her a widow once more. She can’t help it. The black widow is considered one of the most venomous spiders in North American but the bite from a black widow spider rarely causes death for humans.

The male and female black widow look completely different. The females have the distinctive look that we have all heard about. Black with the red hourglass on their body. The males are lighter in color with pink or red spots on their back. They are about half the size of the female and are no match for her if she decides she needs an after mating snack.

Black widow spiders are found all over the world including Asia, Africa, Australia, South American and of course, the United States. In the U. S., you will most likely find them in the Southern and Western parts of the country. They like to live in dry, dark areas where there is lot of bug traffic for meals.

Black widows will eat most anything that gets caught in their web including other spiders. The hunt isn’t that easy for the black widow. She has eight eyes but rarely uses them. Most of the hunting is done through feeling vibrations on the web through all the tiny hairs on the black widow’s leg. The black widow isn’t able to chew food, so she will inject her prey with venom, wrap them up and wait for the venom to turn the bug’s insides to liquid. This is how the black widow spider consumes her food.

As we mentioned above, the black widow female is known for killing the male after they mate. The male black widow does a little dance to let the female know he is there for mating and he is not her prey. She will let him approach and mate but when he is done, she will usually eat him. It’s in her nature and she can’t help it. This leads us to the meaning of the black widow tattoo.

Black Widow Tattoo Meaning

The black widow tattoo has a few different meanings depending on who you ask. First and foremost, the black widow spider represents strong women. Because of the mating habits of the female black widow, the tattoo is used as a symbol to “not mess with me” by women with this tattoo.

Another way the black widow tattoo is used is by men in prison. The spider tattoo or web tattoo is used to represent their incarceration and being trapped in prison like being caught in a web.

The black widow tattoo is also used as a symbol of fear and death. Spiders are often associated with the darker parts in life and those that are fans of horror movies and the idea of darkness and death might get this tattoo. However, if you really want to know what the black widow tattoo represents, just ask the person wearing it.

Black Widow Tattoo Variations

Below you will find a few variations of the black widow tattoo. There are other symbols and images that go well with the black widow tattoo. These images might reinforce an idea or change the meaning completely. These are just a few examples of what we’ve seen.

Black Widow Eating Mate Tattoo

The black widow eating their male counterpart is a tattoo representing bad ass chicks. The person wearing this tattoo will most likely be a woman and by having this tattooed on her body, she is letting the men around her know she is not the type of woman to be messed with. It could be a bit of a defense mechanism but the person wearing this might have been burned in the past and doesn’t want to deal with it again.

3D Black Widow Tattoo

The 3D black widow tattoo has been a popular one for a long time. The meaning might differ depending on who you ask but either way, it looks great. With the long legs of the black widow, you get a very creeped out feeling by seeing this tattoo, but you can also appreciate the art of it.

Black Widow Skull Tattoo

Because their venom packs a punch, the black widow is often associated with death. The skull is an image that will reinforce the idea of death with the black widow. You might see the black widow crawling on a skull or more often, we see the skull replace the abdomen of the black widow.

If you need help finding an artist that will give you a great black widow tattoo, let us know so we can give you a recommendation.

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