by Carl Strang
One of the few bad lessons I learned from my parents in childhood was a fear of spiders, especially big ones. As an adult I defused some of this by examining spiders under the microscope, losing the edge of revulsion through familiarity, and discovering an interesting and even beautiful diversity among them. I have come to tolerate spiders in my home, and over the years have noticed three different kinds.
This is the most abundant species. Recently I finally got around to seeking an identification, and with its elongate body and elegant long legs I believe this is the daddy long-legs spider, Pholcus phalangioides (not to be confused with another arachnid, the harvestman, commonly known as the daddy long-legs). These are small, but not to be underestimated. I once rescued another spider that had fallen into the bathtub and couldn’t get out. (I haven’t seen one of these in a while, and don’t have a photo, but it may have been a common house spider, Tegenaria domestica. They are funnel-web weavers, but the males wander in search of females). I dropped the Tegenaria outside the tub, but it didn’t quite reach the floor. It had fallen into the cobweb snare of a Pholcus. The Tegenaria was much larger and stronger looking, and I figured it would break free quickly and continue on its way. Wrong-o. The Pholcus instantly ran up to the larger Tegenaria and, keeping a safe distance with those long legs, quickly wrapped the Tegenaria in silk and made a killing bite. This took only seconds. I felt remorse, but what a lesson!
The third species makes a cobweb snare similar to that of Pholcus. With its rounded abdomen and marbled markings I believe this is Achaearanea tepidariorum, the American house spider.
Like Pholcus, Achaearanea is tiny but not hard to spot against a pale background. Both of these cobweb makers show up all around the house in the summer, but in autumn they gradually concentrate in the bathrooms, and by mid-winter the only place I notice them is the downstairs bathroom. I have thought this is because of a need for humidity, provided by my showers, and references support the idea. This November has been unusually warm, with rains in the latter part of the month. I still have 2 Pholcus in the upstairs bathroom. Downstairs are 4 Achaearanea and 12 Pholcus. I will be interested in following their careers through the coming dry season.
Incidentally, in addition to keeping these spiders around because I am a softie, I like the fact that they take out ants and other home invaders. The Achaearanea in the above photo was perched above the drained carcasses of many prey, mainly ants but also an impressively large beetle.
Likewise, the Pholcus have been keeping ant numbers within reasonable bounds.
Note that this individual has just shed its exoskeleton, and still is pale. Getting out of that old skin must be quite a job with those long slender legs. All three of these species live only in and around buildings. Putting them outside would be a death sentence. They remind us that we are cave dwellers.
