It is an arachnophobe’s nightmare: homes across much of Britain have been overrun with hordes of spiders this autumn, popping up in baths, running along skirting boards and up walls. This has been blamed on the wet summer – driving the spiders indoors for shelter.
It is true that the small lace web spider flees into homes after heavy rains, when they become flooded out of their own homes. But this autumn’s sightings are mainly because this is the mating season for many spiders, and they are scurrying around indoors looking for a mate. The male common house spider in particular is a sensational sight, its legs spanning up to 9cm, the average width of a man’s hand.
Even more terrifying is Steatoda nobilis, the false widow spider. This has the accolade of Britain’s most poisonous spider, a distant cousin of the notorious and deadly black widow spider. However, the bite of Steatoda nobilis for most people is usually as painful as a bee sting, causes localised swelling, which usually fades away after a few hours.
This spider comes from the Canary Islands and Madeira and was first reported here as long ago as 1879 near Torquay, probably having stowed away in a crate of bananas. For the following century the spider seems to have been limited a to a few relatively warm places on the south coast of England. But over the past two decades, it has been fanning out across southern England and seems to be heading north, probably spurred on by the warmer climate in the UK, and particularly milder winters.
