Web spiders (from the Theridiidae family) are commonly found in and around homes and are mostly harmless. Their canvases are messy and resemble the decorative cobwebs found in stores during the Halloween party.
Steps
Step 1. Learn what a web spider is
Here are some key features.
- Physical characteristics: black bulb-shaped body, never more than 12 mm long.
- Poisonous: No.
- Lives in: North America, Southern Russia, New Zealand and Europe
- Food: This spider catches various types of insects such as mealybugs, ticks, flies, mosquitoes and ants. It can also eat spiders that are poisonous to humans, such as the hobo spider.
Method 1 of 3: Identify the Spider Web
The web spider is very dark brown to black in color and has no easily recognizable markings.
Step 1. Look at the abdomen
Sometimes it is almost glossy black in color while other times it is very pale, with green-brown markings on the abdomen.
Step 2. Look at the legs, they are black and slender, with no visible signs
Method 2 of 3: Recognizing the Habitat
This spider is widespread in many regions of the world, especially in North America and Europe. It builds a sticky web that looks tangled and uneven.
Step 1. Look for messy cobwebs in the corners of your home, basement, garage, or outdoor shed
The canvases are irregular in shape and rather sticky.
Step 2. This spider is almost always found in dark environments, such as caves
Method 3 of 3: Treat a Bite
The web spider is neither aggressive nor poisonous. Most don't even have teeth, but if you get bitten you need to apply general first aid rules.
Step 1. Wash the bite area with soap and water
Step 2. Apply a paste of baking soda and water to relieve itching or pain
Advice
- Web spiders typically live 1-3 years and are preyed upon by wasps and pirate spiders.
- Since these spiders are black, they can sometimes be mistaken for the black widow, who is part of the same family; but common web spiders do not have the red-orange hourglass mark on the abdomen, which is the clear badge of the black widow.
