Britain`s Spiders – A Field Guide (WILDGuides of Britain & Europe, 21)

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False widows attract attention as being one of the few British spiders capable of delivering a venomous bite. However, they will only do so if they are trapped or squashed, often in clothing. Now in a comprehensively revised and updated new edition, Britain’s Spiders is a guide to all 38 British families, focussing on spiders that can be identified in the field. Illustrated with photographs, it is designed to be accessible to a wide audience, including those new to spider identification. Hillyard, P. D. 2005. Harvestmen. Synopses of the British Fauna. Shrewsbury: Field Studies Council. This excellent summary of our harvestman fauna provides accounts of the structure and biology of our 25 species together with easy-to-use illustrated keys and distribution maps. One spider that benefits from good summer weather is the European garden spider, Araneus diadematus, also known as the garden orb-weaver or cross spider. People often spot the females sitting in the middle of their large webs in gardens or across doors and windows. Most species of spider in the UK live for a year or perhaps two. Those that live indoors with fewer predators are more likely to live for two or three years. The garden spider is the UK's most common orb web spider/Credit: Getty How many eyes do spiders have?

With warmer weather, we keep our doors and windows open longer into spider season, and let more of the wandering males in.

Segestriidae - Six-eyed spiders

UK spider species usually have eight eyes, though some many have six or even less. You would assume this meant they have excellent vision, but they don't. With poor eyesight, spiders tend to rely on touch, taste and vibrations to move around and find food. Can you be bitten by a spider in the UK?

Large house spider ( Tegenaria species) males start to move around seeking out more sedentary females. Although more commonly seen inside houses, they live perfectly happily outdoors too. Earlier in the year zebra spiders ( Salticus scenicus) lurk on sunny fences and walls. These are jumping spiders that leap on their prey rather than ensnaring them in webs. They have excellent binocular vision and can estimate how far away the prey is before pouncing. But their creepy reputation isn't helped by their huge leg span of 12cm and tendency to creep out at night when Brits are sound asleep. Habitat: Under stones and logs with its main prey items – woodlice. Sometimes indoors, in porches or garages. Mouthparts shining pink, with long red fangs necessary to puncture tough crustacean shells. Can deliver painful nip if handled incautiously. There are around 650 species of spiders found in the UK. However, only some of them, most notably the false widow spider, are capable of delivering a bite that is considered deadly to humans. The largest species of spider in the UK is the cardinal spider at 12 cm leg span, while money spiders are the smallest at around 2mm. They become more visible during the autumn, though the spiders are active throughout the year.There are around 650 species of spider in the UK, ranging from those with a leg span of just a couple of millimetres, to the 12cm leg span of the cardinal spider. Spiders are predators, and they use an impressive pair of fangs to catch prey, and to introduce venom. All spiders have fangs but not all spiders have fangs that are able to pierce human skin. Consequently, there are relatively few UK species that are able to bite us in any meaningful way. Its bite can be relatively painful and can cause swelling, while other symptoms may last for a number hours. Up-to-date distribution maps, and charts showing adult seasonality Introductory chapters on the biology of spiders, and where, when and how to find them, including equipment needed in the field

Create a list of articles to read later. You will be able to access your list from any article in Discover. Of the 33 spider families represented in Britain, 21 are featured in this chart. The guide includes colour illustrations and a table with identification features, habitat and methods of prey capture for the 40 spiders featured in the chart. The venom from most of the handful of UK species that can bite is less concerning than the puncture wound the bite causes. Fangs can introduce bacteria into the tiny wounds they create, so if you suspect you have been bitten by a spider it is best to clean the wound and use a local antiseptic treatment. Just as with a wasp or bee sting, antihistamines may help with the swelling and itching but if symptoms do not improve, get worse or develop into other symptoms then it is sensible to seek medical attention. Rarely, some people may be allergic to spider venom, with similar symptoms developing as with a bee or wasp sting allergy. They aren't bigger, and there aren't really more of them. What we can say is that because of the weather and our windows and doors remaining open, there are more observations of some of the larger species that enter our homes,' says Hine. Plumper, broader, rounder than the garden spider, with four indented dimples on its abdomen, usually outlined with four white spots but very variable. Up to 17mm in length. More usually found in grassland and heaths – webs are stretched between plants with a funnel retreat at one side. The heaviest British spider. Makes webs in long grass and dense shrubs. Bridge orb-weaver ( Larinioides sclopetarius) The bridge orb weaver spider is often found in light areas near water/Credit: Getty

Spiders are more visible in autumn because most of them are looking for a mate, having reached full maturity towards the end of their commonly one-year life cycles. There are 650 species of spider in the UK. What species of spider are found in the UK? Garden or diadem spider ( Araneus diadematus) Although commonly known as the 'garden' spider, the diadem spider can be found almost everywhere in Britain/Credit: Getty

Four spot orb-weaver ( Araneus quadratus) The four spot orb weaver spider usually weaves webs between adjacent plants/Credit: Getty Is importation of foreign spiders into the UK a common occurrence? And are these species able to survive the winter? They live in warm tropical climates across the world in places such as Australasia, Asia, Africa, the Americas, and the Mediterranean Basin. Roberts, M. J. 1995. Collins field guide: spiders of Britain and northern Europe. London: HarperCollins. Mike Roberts re-drew all the pedipalps and epigynes and repainted the colour plates for this single-volume field guide. The species coverage differs from the “Big Roberts” in that a small number of additional species from the adjacent continent are also described. Only a relatively few Linyphiidae or money spiders species (around 40) with a distinctive abdominal pattern, some of which can be recognised using a hand lens, are included. They are common in Australia but have been introduced accidentally to parts of the USA, Pakistan, India, China, and Japan.Gardeners, whether pleased about it or not, will have a lot of hands-on experience when it comes to UK spiders – but are UK spiders dangerous? This species is pretty self-explanatory - it's very large and likes to live in homes, buildings, sheds and attics. British Spiders a field guide is one of the latest publications in the popular WILDGuides series. Other books in the series can be explored here It’s simply a matter of understanding – fear often comes from ignorance, and the best antidote to ignorance is knowledge. And when it comes to acquiring a knowledge of spiders – at least those of Great Britain – it’s dashedly to find a more informative and accessible book about them than Britain’s Spiders from the Princeton University Press WILDGuides series.