Out of the thousands of species of Spiders in the world the brown recluse has some of the most fascinating characteristics. Consider these unique traits of the brown recluse spider. A brown recluse spider lives up to its name by spending most of its time in quiet, dark spaces. Brown recluses make their homes in crawl spaces underneath buildings, corners of attics, and even under fallen logs. These spiders live in places where there is very little human activity. Though these spiders are not aggressive, they will bite if they feel threatened. Since brown recluses don't like to be around humans, bites usually occur in an accidental way. For instance, a person may try on a pair of shoes that have been in the attic for several years only to get a bite from a brown recluse that has made its home in the old shoes. In short, it's rare to find a brown recluse wandering around outside its home. Another interesting characteristic of a brown recluse spider is the marking on its back. Sometimes brown recluses are called, fiddle spiders' because of the marking that looks like a violin on the upper side of their body. Trying to identify a brown recluse spider by this marking can be tricky because the design may be hard to see especially if it's a young spider. Furthermore, not all brown recluses are the same shade of brown. Some are light brown while others are dark brown. It may take an entomologist to determine whether a brown spider is indeed a brown recluse. There are many brown spiders that have been misidentified as brown recluses. Unlike many other spiders, a brown recluse doesn't use a web to catch its food. These spiders hunt during the night and feed on insects both alive and dead. They kill insects with their venom. The final trait that makes the brown recluse different from many other spiders is that it has six eyes instead of eight. It has three pairs of eyes in specific places on its head. Most spiders have eight eyes organized in rows.