#giant house spider

[seabeck]

I love house spiders but it still gave me a surprise to see it on the counter

#I’m amazed it could climb it #also it climbed on my back and vanished #spider #giant house spider

[onenicebugperday]

Do you have any tips for telling apart hobo spiders and giant house spiders? I see both at my work, but I can't figure out how people tell them apart

"Giant house spider" includes two species, Eratigena atrica and Eratigena duellica. Hobo spiders are Eratigena agrestis. They're all in the same genus and look very similar, but they don't all have the same distribution, so location would be important. You may not even have both in your area, though there's lots of overlap. iNaturalist has good distribution maps that can be compared.

Sometimes it's not possible or would be very difficult to accurately tell them apart just from looking at them, especially because there's variation in coloration and markings between individuals even within the same species. I sometimes struggle with an exact ID in a location where two or all three of the species are found. Hobo spiders are a little big easier to single out from E. atrica and E. duellica because they tend to be more golden in color and their markings are just slightly different - more mottled, in general.

But functionally, there's no need to tell the difference. People used to think hobo spiders had medically significant venom, which would be a good reason to want to tell them apart, but we know now that that's not true.

Some reference photos to see how similar they are:

Eratigena duellica female, found primarily in the PNW and very western Europe, photo by hawnzd

Eratigena atrica female, found throughout Europe and occasionally in very eastern coastal Canada, photo by romanvrbicek

Eratigena agrestis (hobo spider) female, found primarily in the PNW and down through the rockies, around Toronto, and throughout Europe, photo by alexis_orion

#moth-queer #bugs #arachnids #spider #funnel weaver #agelenidae #giant house spider #Eratigena #hobo spider #the more you know #that was probably not very helpful but they are not easy to tell apart!

[unhingedlesbear]

Fliss is fucking awesome and very very beautiful but sometimes I'm just sat here willing her to shed a bit so I can actually get a good picture of her 💔 she's SO tiny

"6th biggest spider in the UK" my ass 🗣🗣🗣

I hope to handle her one day but rn she's just sooo tiny and also I'm pretty sure she's the fastest spider species in the uk too so I don't exactly wanna lose her

#Fliss tag #bugs #bugblr #spiders #arachnids #giant house spider

[animalcrossingnewhorizons]

Empress giving herself a scritch

#clicks! #arachnids #spider #giant house spider

[loracarol]

So yeah, I'm the bug person at the ice rink lol. Even though it closes for the summer. Anyway, this lovely spider was chilling (ba-dum) on the side of the rink, and one of the young girls asked me to take care of it.

iNaturalist suggests it's an E. duellica/Giant House Spider, and I suspect it's female because of the lack of 'boxing gloves', but I could always be wrong.

@onenicebugperday, I know your submissions are currently closed, but is it cool if I tag you just to share the pic? I don't need it ID'd. :)

#spider #arachnid #insect #bug #giant house spider

[carciinogen]

I haven't made a blog post in a while, so have this huge gal I found in my backyard!

I believe it was a female Giant house spider (Eratigena duellica) due it's large size and abdomen markings, but further ID may be needed :)

#cw: bugs #cw: spiders #bugblr #entomology #spiders #arachnids #giant house spider #arachnology

[dansnaturepictures]

Giant House spider it was interesting to see, sky out the back and Square-spot Rustic tonight 08/09/2023.

#square-spot rustic #sky #moth #moths #giant house spider #spider #spiders #2023 #uk #eastleigh #home #night #evening #happy #weekend #friday #europe

[morgan-the-lonely-brick]

Look at this big babyyyyy!

That's a GWORL

I found her while gardening. Thought she was a frog for a moment xd

I live in Europe btw, not Australia

#spiders #Spider #Tw spider #Eratigena atrica #pokoutník tmavý #Giant house spider #at least i think so

[quarknado]

She waits for prey

#giant house spider #Eratigena saeva

[seabeck]

Some friends

#harvestman #house spider #giant house spider #bug #spider #arachnids

[bisexualbaker]

So I just found out that the resident Giant House Spider (I'm pretty sure that's what it is) has decided that my shower curtain is the perfect place to lay an egg sack. As in, the spider has used the sides of a fold in the curtain to secure her egg sack.

Spider enthusiast side of Tumblr, is it safe for me to move the curtain and/or the egg sack? Mama Spider is crouching over it, so I assume she'd prefer to stay with it if possible. I don't want to stress her out if I don't have to, but I'd also prefer to keep using the shower closer to my room.

#spiders tw #giant house spider #spider eggs #arthropods #arachnophobia tw #spiders

[onenicebugperday]

A continuation of submissions by @rose-grimm-spirit-does-dumb-shit!

In order: a giant house spider, a Jersey tiger moth, a dusky thorn, and I assume the 4th and 5th photos are the same butterfly? Looks like a speckled wood but maybe one of the subspecies :)

#insects #bugs #arachnids #submission #giant house spider #moth #tiger moth #jersey tiger #dusky thorn #butterfly #speckled wood

[unhingedlesbear]

Held Fliss today! I don't usually handle her at all, this was my first time doing so since getting her. Bc she's so fast and tiny I'm afraid to lose or hurt her by accident, but I had to transfer her to a new larger enclosure today and that involved handling. Look at herrr <3

also she's very chubby I MAY have fed her one too many fruit flies..

#Fliss tag #bugs #bugblr #arachnids #giant house spider

[sapphirethefluffymewtwo]

Caught this dude the other day! Same species as the spider in my bedroom, probably not the exact same spider

Oh, and if you're curious, I'll put some more information about the spider below the cut!

The giant house spider (Eratigena atrica) is native to Europe, but was accidentally introduced into North America. It is a large spider, with legs spanning around 3 inches. It is usually found in dark corners of people's houses, or possibly in bathtubs where it has gotten trapped while searching for water. They are very quick and can travel 1.4 feet in just one second.

Despite this spider's size, it is not dangerous in any way. Its venom is harmless and they are very reluctant to bite, even if provoked. In fact, it's so docile that it's nicknamed "the gentle giant." This particular spider that I caught was somewhat stressed, but made no attempt to bite, and seemed content to just crawl around on my arm.

This one is a male. Males have smaller bodies, longer legs, and bulbous pedipalps (the things beside his mouth). During the late summer and early fall months, males leave their nests in search of females.

As with all true house spiders, most giant house spiders have never truly been outside. This one I actually found outside, so it's the exception, but around 95% of the house spiders that you find have lived their entire lives in the house. So, how they got in isn't really a question. They've always been here. In fact, putting them outside could potentially kill them! (Again, probably not this guy, since I found him outside.)

Giant house spiders are very helpful, since they eat termites and other pests that could be potentially harmful. They also compete for resources with the infamous hobo spider (...which isn't actually dangerous, contrary to popular belief).

That was a lot, sorry guys. I find animals interesting :)

#tw: spiders #giant house spider

[sapphism-and-nihilism]

Just caught this ABSOLUTE UNIT of a male Giant House Spider crawling across my bed rn; apparently they are an introduced species, so I don’t know what I am going to do with him now that I know that, but my god is he breathtaking to look at!

#spider #arachnid #arthropod #arachnophobia cw #eratigena atrica #giant house spider #photo #house spider #funnel weaver spider

[unofficial-sean]

Big female looking for a male to mate. August's their month.

#giant house spider #arachnids #false black widow #that last tag is the small one to the left btw