Is this a False Widow?

[fblake]

Hi there

Can anyone from the type of web and photos taken confirm if this is a false widow? I tried to get as close to the spider as possible!

Thanks

Does look like one.

😱 my head bounced off its web when I went to pick up my watering can 😱

looks like it could be. Run away!

That web looks like a FW one for starters. Burn your house down, OP!

Yes. Leave it alone and it will leave you alone.

No.

Yes it does but they've been here hundreds of years despite the bad press so leave it alone - it won't hurt you🕷

I'll leave it be 😊

Good on you, OP 👍

I'll just keep my watering can somewhere else so I don't stick my head in its web again!

I wpuld say yes, sorry it would have to go & any thing that looks like a nest.

Well thank goodness OP found it then and not you 🙄

Hi ,false widows I believe are actually not native to the uk they were introduced from central or south america a few years ago. They are probably the most poisonous spider in the uk but dont let that alarm you it's only as bad as a wasp sting for most people.The spider pictured looks to be a fw Male which is considerably smaller than the female. I had a large female living in my bedroom if you leave them alone they wont bother you they will only bite if you squish them by accident.

they were introduced from central or south america a few years ago.

I believe they were first recorded in the uk in the 1800s. People have only started noticing them recently because of the bad press they get.
They are nothing like black widows and the scaremongering surrounding them is ridiculous.

Yes, that has the round shiny behind that's a mark of a false widow. We have them in the garden.

That sounds like one of our garden gnomes @FreckledLeopard

These get such bad press. If they do bite it's no worse than a wasp sting and medical advice is a bag of frozen peas on it, so not sure why the hysteria?

Looks like a female to me tbh.
Think they were introduced from the cannery islands

Hi the image is not clear enough to tell. There are a number of species of spiders it could be, none of them dangerous in the uk. False widows tend only to be found in Southern counties. If it is one it will not bite unless it feels threatened. Even if it does it is no worse than a wasp sting. Best thing is just to leave it in peace.

Thanks for the replies all. I will see if I can get a more clear image today as it was getting dark yesterday. I live in East Sussex of which I understand there are a few down here.

This is the one living in my kitchen. There’s a flash reflection from the camera, but if you zoom in you can see the skull markings on her back. She’s amazing at catching wasps lol.

Yours looks like it has a dent in its side!

It's clear enough just. The white band is a dead give away
It's a noble false widow, we have loads in our garden. There generally nocturnal and hide all day so no bother

The one in the kitchen looks like steatoda grossa which is another type of false widow, not steatoda nobalis which is the noble false widow. There are three types in the uk