The Barn Funnel Weaving Spider is a species of common spiders found in many places across the world and are known in different names including Domestic House Spider in Europe, Common House Spider in the Pacific Northwest, as well as Drain Spider and Lesser European House Spider. They are a close relative to the much common hobo spider.
Size: Females are larger with a length of 7.5–11.5 mm (0.30–0.45 in), while the males are between 6–9 mm (0.24–0.35 in).
Color: Body color varies from dark orange to brown, beige, or grayish with striped legs and two faint, black, longitudinal stripes across the cephalothorax. The abdomen region is marked in beige, gray, or brown.
Other Characteristic Features: They have an elongated body with a straight abdomen and a flat cephalothorax. They are known for their high speed, and can move in lightning speed from one corner of the web to another if they are attacked or can sense that its prey has got stuck in the web.
In late autumn, the female lays its eggs. Each egg sac contains up to 50 eggs and is placed at the tip of the funnel suspended from silk lines, or in other locations close to the web where the mother protects the eggs until they are ready to hatch. In its entire lifespan, the female can produce up to nine egg sacs.
The baby funnel weaver spiders undergo a process of simple metamorphosis. The spiderlings hatch out of the eggs and resemble a tiny version of the adults. As they grow, they keep shedding their skin.
This species is not venomous for humans, and they rarely bite. Even if they do, the bite is painless. There have been no documented cases of barn funnel weaver bites. However, it seems quite reasonable to assume that their bite will not develop symptoms greater than the grass spider, their cousin, that only give mild symptoms like local swelling, redness, or some itching.
| Lifespan | Females that live indoors can live anything between 2-7 years, while those living outdoor usually die of cold. The males hardly live for a year. |
| Distribution | Ranges throughout the world, starting Scandinavia to far north, to far south till Greece in Europe |
| Habitat | Can be found in different structures mostly in sheds and barns, door crevices, as also in the cracks of or under rocks |
| Common predators | Reptiles like lizards, chameleons, snakes, etc., as well as various species of birds |
| Diet | Various kinds of insects |
Image Credits: Bugguide.net, Spidersinohio.net, Farm1.staticflickr.com, Nathistoc.bio.uci.edu, Pidersinohio.net, Bugwoodcloud.org
The Barn Funnel Weaving Spider is a species of common spiders found in many places across the world and are known in different names including Domestic House Spider in Europe, Common House Spider in the Pacific Northwest, as well as Drain Spider and Lesser European House Spider. They are a close relative to the much common hobo spider.
Size: Females are larger with a length of 7.5–11.5 mm (0.30–0.45 in), while the males are between 6–9 mm (0.24–0.35 in).
Color: Body color varies from dark orange to brown, beige, or grayish with striped legs and two faint, black, longitudinal stripes across the cephalothorax. The abdomen region is marked in beige, gray, or brown.
Other Characteristic Features: They have an elongated body with a straight abdomen and a flat cephalothorax. They are known for their high speed, and can move in lightning speed from one corner of the web to another if they are attacked or can sense that its prey has got stuck in the web.
In late autumn, the female lays its eggs. Each egg sac contains up to 50 eggs and is placed at the tip of the funnel suspended from silk lines, or in other locations close to the web where the mother protects the eggs until they are ready to hatch. In its entire lifespan, the female can produce up to nine egg sacs.
The baby funnel weaver spiders undergo a process of simple metamorphosis. The spiderlings hatch out of the eggs and resemble a tiny version of the adults. As they grow, they keep shedding their skin.
This species is not venomous for humans, and they rarely bite. Even if they do, the bite is painless. There have been no documented cases of barn funnel weaver bites. However, it seems quite reasonable to assume that their bite will not develop symptoms greater than the grass spider, their cousin, that only give mild symptoms like local swelling, redness, or some itching.
| Lifespan | Females that live indoors can live anything between 2-7 years, while those living outdoor usually die of cold. The males hardly live for a year. |
| Distribution | Ranges throughout the world, starting Scandinavia to far north, to far south till Greece in Europe |
| Habitat | Can be found in different structures mostly in sheds and barns, door crevices, as also in the cracks of or under rocks |
| Common predators | Reptiles like lizards, chameleons, snakes, etc., as well as various species of birds |
| Diet | Various kinds of insects |
Image Credits: Bugguide.net, Spidersinohio.net, Farm1.staticflickr.com, Nathistoc.bio.uci.edu, Pidersinohio.net, Bugwoodcloud.org
Roy Williams on March 27, 2019.
Dr. Watuwa James
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