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Bertwhistle
07 July 2023 17:38:02
Not publishable evidence of course, but we, like many, have an ongoing and increasing problem with false widow type spiders, including nobles, cupboards.

We have allowed cobweb spiders to breed freely in our downstairs loo for several years as they literally take out the fws.

The indoor numbers have significantly dropped (10 a summer inside the house to <1 on average). We have seen several fws webbed up with cobbies (as my children call them- importantly lacking the 'spider' word) feasting on them.

At first we marvelled at this diminutive arachnid's ability to tackle these nasty-looking, big-bodied bugs but then decided their web-spinning prowess and long legs make them quick winners. 
Unlike the fws, these guys were dangling in Granny's bathroom in the 1960s, and also unlike them, they don't upset anyone in the family. Do we have a potential invasive species remover here?

 
Bertie, Itchen Valley.
Retire while you can still press the 'retire now' button.
picturesareme
08 July 2023 22:45:10
False widows as in S.nobilis have been happily living in here since the 1800's. I don't like spiders but there are worse none native spiders here than nobilis - Segestria Florentina. Big black tube web duckers that are aggressive and love to set up home on walls, window ledges, fences etc 

As for the cupboard spider S.Grossa this spider is a basically a native false widow as it arrived many hundreds of years ago. 
picturesareme
08 July 2023 22:52:10
Typical tubeweb S.Florentina 

UserPostedImage 

They can be bigger and they don't care about other spiders.
CreweCold
09 July 2023 20:00:11

False widows as in S.nobilis have been happily living in here since the 1800's. I don't like spiders but there are worse none native spiders here than nobilis - Segestria Florentina. Big black tube web duckers that are aggressive and love to set up home on walls, window ledges, fences etc 

As for the cupboard spider S.Grossa this spider is a basically a native false widow as it arrived many hundreds of years ago. 

Originally Posted by: picturesareme 


The false widow gets a bit of a bad rep, I’ve read they’re not half as troublesome as they’ve been reported as being.

As you say, Segestria are aggressive. Never seen one personally but I’ve read that they have shimmery green palps and can bite humans, delivering a fairly painful nip. Originally they were found in Mediterranean regions but have spread further N across Europe.

Crewe, Cheshire
55 metres above sea level
picturesareme
09 July 2023 22:31:00

The false widow gets a bit of a bad rep, I’ve read they’re not half as troublesome as they’ve been reported as being.

As you say, Segestria are aggressive. Never seen one personally but I’ve read that they have shimmery green palps and can bite humans, delivering a fairly painful nip. Originally they were found in Mediterranean regions but have spread further N across Europe.

Originally Posted by: CreweCold 



They are in an abundance down here and yes as you say they do have nice metallic green palps when you shine a torch in them. 
CreweCold
09 July 2023 22:55:24

They are in an abundance down here and yes as you say they do have nice metallic green palps when you shine a torch in them. 

Originally Posted by: picturesareme 


The spiders I dislike the most are giant house spiders. At least most others tend to stay out of your way, but these things...Sinister looking things and can run at a hell of a pace.

Don't mind cellar spiders too much, I don't bat an eye when I see one in my room and I know that they won't think twice about pouncing on a giant house spider if one stumbles into its web.

Crewe, Cheshire
55 metres above sea level
ozone_aurora
09 July 2023 23:17:07
At my old home in Lowestoft, there were plenty of Steatoda nobilis and Steatoda grossa spiders. They tend to hang in crevices in porches and outer windows, and spin messy webs. They are an invasive species in the UK, originating from Canaries and Madeira, and are reported to spreading northwards; there are a few here in Sheffield now. 

They look quite sinister, and after seeing about it in popular media, felt I wouldn't want to be bitten by them. But as you (CreweCold and picturesareme) said, they don't appear to be particularly troublesome. I have handle several of these, and, so far, don't seem to be aggressive; they were quite docile. Large House Spiders (Eratigena atrica, formally Tegenaria species) on the other hand seemed quite aggressive, or rather, highly agitated when handled, as so do Common Mouse Spiders (Scotophaeus blackwalli), commonly seen scuttling across the house walls at night.

We also had plenty of Daddy Long Legs Spiders, which never bothered me, living in dark areas of the room. I've observed them feasting on other spiders, including one feasting on a Woodlouse Spider (Dysdera crocata), sinister looking reddish spiders with huge fangs and abdomen resembling a peanut. 

Not seen Green-fanged Tube Web Spider (Segestria florentina) yet!
 
CreweCold
09 July 2023 23:24:40

At my old home in Lowestoft, there were plenty of Steatoda nobilis and Steatoda grossa spiders. They tend to hang in crevices in porches and outer windows, and spin messy webs. They are an invasive species in the UK, originating from Canaries and Madeira, and are reported to spreading northwards; there are a few here in Sheffield now. 

They look quite sinister, and after seeing about it in popular media, felt I wouldn't want to be bitten by them. But as you (CreweCold and picturesareme) said, they don't appear to be particularly troublesome. I have handle several of these, and, so far, don't seem to be aggressive; they were quite docile. Large House Spiders (Eratigena atrica, formally Tegenaria species) on the other hand seemed quite aggressive, or rather, highly agitated when handled, as so do Common Mouse Spiders (Scotophaeus blackwalli), commonly seen scuttling across the house walls at night.

We also had plenty of Daddy Long Legs Spiders, which never bothered me, living in dark areas of the room. I've observed them feasting on other spiders, including one feasting on a Woodlouse Spider (Dysdera crocata), sinister looking reddish spiders with huge fangs and abdomen resembling a peanut. 

Not yet seen Green-fanged Tube Web Spider (Segestria florentina) yet!
 

Originally Posted by: ozone_aurora 



You're correct about the giant house spiders and mouse spiders...the former tend to be aggressive in terms of the males during mating season. They will quite happily run at you and some of them are huge. Despite what some people say, they can nip too. I got bitten by one that found its way under my bed sheets some years ago. 

Crewe, Cheshire
55 metres above sea level
Roger Parsons
12 August 2023 15:41:03
NatureSpot's Spiders page is a useful place to start identification.
If you are serious about biological recording I'd recommend iRecord.
https://www.naturespot.org.uk/gallery/spiders 
https://irecord.org.uk/ 
RogerP
West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire
Everything taken together, here in Lincolnshire are more good things than man could have had the conscience to ask.
William Cobbett, in his Rural Rides - c.1830
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