A WORLD WIDE
DURING lockdown we’ve been sharing our living space with plenty of eight-legged lodgers. Watching a spider wrap up an unfortunate fly, I decided to find out more about our native arachnids. There are many different species of spider in the UK, most of which don’t bite or cause much of a nuisance at all, really.
Jan Beccaloni, curator of arachnida and myriapoda at the Natural History Museum, says she meets many people who are scared of spiders.
“That’s a great pity because spiders are awesome creatures which are sadly misunderstood,” says Jan. “Aside from their key role in feeding on pest insect species, their silk is being developed to make specialist clothing such as bullet-proof vests and their venom can be used in pain relief. Next time you find an unwanted spider in your house, please don’t kill it! Either leave it in peace, or humanely put it out in your shed.”
Here are a few spiders you might have spotted around your home.
Wolf spider: The wolf spider gets its name from its hunting technique… it scuttles along the ground and pounces on its prey just like its canine namesake.
Wolf spiders are fairly hairy with patterns of dark grey, brown and black. In warm weather you might see them sunbathing!
Garden spider: This is our most common orb web spider and is plentiful across the country. You can spot it sitting in the middle of its web as it waits for the vibrations caused by prey landing in its sticky threads. Female garden spiders are twice the size of males.
Lace web spider: The lace web can be found outdoors, making its home in holes in garden walls, fences and similar tubular nooks. It gets its name from its lacy web, which is sticky and woolly-looking, with extremely fine fibres. This species can give humans a painful bite if it feels threatened.
Cellar spider: You might see these spindly spiders – sometimes called daddy long-legs – on the ceiling in the corners of your room.
Their Th wispy webs b look l k messy but are actually really effective at trapping prey, including fruit flies, mosquitos and other insects.
Giant house spider: With a leg span of up to 7.5cm, these fast-andfriendly giants spin sheet-like webs indoors but, if they don’t catch anything, they can survive for months without eating or drinking.
Money spider: At the opposite end of the scale is the tiny, shiny black money spider, which superstition says will bring you wealth if it lands on you. They get around by ‘ballooning’ – letting out a strand of silk which is caught by the wind, lifting them into the air.