Spiders Amongst Us

Lepthyphantes minutus?

2011-11-22T03:20:00.000-08:00

I found this small sopider in the house, its smaller than Zygiella with distinctive chevron markings on the abdomen. I couldnt get a view of the business end, he or she wouldnt move but I believe it to be adult female and my searches have led to a close match with Lepthyphantes minutus in the Linyphiidae family.

Zygiella x-notata, underside

2011-11-12T12:45:00.000-08:00

Spotted on the outside of the window at night, ID later confirmed when it turned around!

Small spider in web

2011-10-30T07:48:00.001-07:00

Spotted this little one last night near the lamp outside. Its body is about the size of a small pea.
Pretty sure this is a Zygiella too but with slightly unusual markings.

Nuctenea on the wall

2011-10-03T13:40:00.000-07:00

I found this Nuctenea umbratica clinging to the wall outside, by the front door and captured it with my phone. It looked menacing, ready to pounce.

One of its common names is lazy spider as it will stay in one place for ages, and will not be moved!

Backlit Araneus

2011-10-02T07:24:00.000-07:00

Our kitchen window has a quite spectacular lodger!

Another Tetragnathid

2011-06-06T14:14:00.000-07:00

This one was found on the washing line and taken with the Canon 30D + 270EX flashgun.

Tetragnathid

2011-04-17T11:55:00.000-07:00

I was photographing a tree in a field with the 75-300 zoom lens and I noticed something in front of me. I pulled the focus to see a grass stem with a spider on the end. Looks like a species of Tetragnatha to me.

Steatoda bipunctata

2011-04-16T02:29:00.000-07:00

My daughter found this in the kitchen yesterday, and I had a fun time chasing it to get some decent photographs of it!
Many thanks to GRB on arachnophiles for the info!

Linyphia triangularis?

2010-05-09T05:15:00.000-07:00

I saw this tiny spider on our kitchen window and stalked him with the macro lens.

Theridiid spider on the move

2010-04-21T08:10:00.001-07:00

This is a tiny spider, what we call a money Spider in the UK, filmed in the house up close. Its body is smaller than a match head!

Huge House Spider captured!

2009-11-10T05:40:00.000-08:00

My partner Helen found this huge male Tegenaria while I was at work. When I got home I found a container to photograph him in before releasiing him into the garden.

Amaurobius similis

2009-04-05T07:50:00.000-07:00

Found this little lady inside the washing machine door!
Pretty sure its a female A.similis

Zygiella x-notata

2009-04-05T07:42:00.000-07:00

Found this one near the front door.

2009-03-15T04:49:00.000-07:00

I found this tiny spider in the bathroom last night and tried my best to get a shot. I thougt it had gone and was about to give up when I saw it crawling over the flash diffuser! I encouraged it to crawl over my finger then quickly grabbed a shot!

Mouse Spider

2009-02-08T12:24:00.000-08:00

A little Mouse Spider (Scotophaeus blackwallii) found in the kids room and captured with the Canon 10D + macro lens.
This is one of those cases where Live View would be handy as to get thew shot I had to hold the camera stretched out in front of me and guess the shot-could just see the spider in the viewfinder. Also one of the rare occasions I use AF! Would have been impossible without it!

Zygiella

2008-08-25T03:31:00.001-07:00

I found this under some peeling bark on a tree in the garden.
I assume it to be Z.x-notata as the markings are spot on for that species.

Money Spider

2008-08-23T11:31:00.001-07:00

This one is very small, smaller than a match head in fact!
Its a member of the Linyphiidae family which are almost impossible to ID without a microscope as theyre just so small and so alike.

Wolf Spider

2008-08-20T12:31:00.000-07:00

I found this on the shed wall earlier today. It has been ID'ed as Pardosa amentata.(Thanks mambo!)

Nursery Web Spider

2008-08-10T04:41:00.000-07:00

This is a fantastic looking spider, quite a size too, and I first came across this in the parents garden where it was setting up a web in a conifer tree.
I brogut it indoors to photograph then put it back to let it continue with its business.
Pisaura mirabilis.

Nuctenea umbratica

2008-08-10T04:37:00.000-07:00

This is a very long legged spider and is often found in houses, seemingly unmoving and often acts as if its dying. Its name 'umbratica' means lazy!

Garden Spider

2008-08-10T04:30:00.000-07:00

This is a very common spider, in spring the garden hedge is full of the baby spiders. This one was photographed in the shed near the window. The colour is very variable in this species with marked sexual dimorphism.

Heres a much smaller male-found in the house recently!

Amaurobius

2008-08-10T04:28:00.000-07:00

This is a medium sized spider often as not found in the shed(I've yet to see one in the house), possibly A.similis.

Theridion melanurum

2008-08-10T04:22:00.000-07:00

This is a very small spider, a couple of millimeters across, about the size of a money spider, yet as you can see from its 'boxing gloves' it is an adult male!

House Spider

2008-08-10T04:08:00.000-07:00

Not to be confused with the Mouse Spider below Tegenaria is probably the commonest spider to be found. At first I thought this was T.domestica but having had a good close look at the emboli on the palps I'm certain its T.duellica.

Heres a pic of the embolus of one of these spiders.I checked with my spider book which confirmed it as T.duellica. (Note the above spider is a later female)

Mouse Spider

2008-08-10T04:06:00.001-07:00

This is Scotophaeus blackwallii, commonly known as the Mouse Spider because it looks furry,just like a mouse!
Not so much found in the house but often one or two are found in the shed.

Unknown spider in the house

2008-08-10T04:03:00.000-07:00

I came across this one night before bed, had to get a photo. Closest ID I can get is Enoplognatha ovata (Red and White Spider) but it lacks the twin lines of dark spots on the abdomen.