House Spider (Tegenaria domestica)
Appearance
Up to 3/8-inch in length, these spiders are yellowish brown, abdomen is a dirty white colour with a few dark spots (sometimes with a black triangular spot in the centre) to almost black, with several dark stripes meeting at an angle above tip of abdomen.
Habits
This Spider is the most common type of spider encountered indoors. It is a nuisance pest, more because of its webs than the spider itself.
The house spider randomly selects its web sites and creates an intricate web. If one web does not yield prey, another location is selected, and a new web is built. Survival is low in modern homes due to the low level of humidity and fewer insects, higher in garages, sheds, barns, warehouses, etc. because of more prey and generally higher humidity, and highest outdoors in protected areas.
Inside buildings, house spiders are most likely to be located in upper corners, under furniture, in closets, corners of window frames, basements, garages, and crawl spaces. Outside they are often around windows and under eaves especially near light sources which attract prey.
Threats
House spiders are nuisance pests but pose no threats to humans.
Prevention
Why House Spiders Appear Indoors in Autumn
The influx of large house spiders into Irish homes in August and September is not a sign of a spider infestation — it is the annual mating season. Male house spiders leave their webs and roam in search of females, which brings them into contact with humans who rarely see them at any other time of year. The spiders most commonly found running across floors and appearing in baths in autumn are adult male spiders on their mating hunt — they are not nesting indoors or establishing a colony.
The female house spider remains in her web throughout the year and is rarely seen. It is the wandering males who create the impression of a spider “invasion.” Once mating season ends in October and November, sightings reduce significantly. The same spider is almost never seen twice — multiple sightings in the same period are typically different individuals entering from outside.
Practical steps to reduce autumn spider entry:
- Seal gaps around door frames, window frames, and where cables and pipes enter the building
- Fit brush strips to the bottom of external doors
- Remove outdoor lighting near entry points where possible — light attracts insects, which attract spiders
- Clear garden debris and vegetation from directly against the building walls
- Regular hoovering of webs discourages spiders from establishing in a location
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