Any spiderologists around that can explain this spider behaviour?

[AnneBullen]

We have a little house spider that lives in the kitchen. He will probably grow up to be one of those terrifying big scampering ones and therefore will sadly have to eventually die by my husband’s hand, but for the moment he is OK. He lives under a step in the kitchen next to the dog food. He spends absolutely all day standing stock still next to his little hole. Occasionally he is it there and I have seen him dart into his hole so if he’s not there I know where he is, but otherwise he just there all day, and all night for all I know.

Questions

1. what is he doing?

2. there was a dead fly on the floor near him last night. I left it, for science. This morning it was not there. Did he eat it?

3. How does he get enough to eat?
   And drink?

Just find it a little..... odd? That he sits there all day just a few centimetres from the kids running about, husband, me, dog, and he’s just sitting there in the middle of everything not moving?

Oi! My pet spider us called Boris. Boris the bathroom spider.

He's one of those spindly whitish ones that apparently eat the big fucker house spiders.

Either he or the millions of conkers that came off the tree in the garden are doing their job because I've not seen a big fucker in a year.

He is in no way related to the actual Boris because 1. I like him and 2. He is good at this job.

We had a smallish spider that lived outside in an airbrick. One morning I saw it had captured and killed a huge spider about 5 x bigger than it which it was trying to drag up into the airbrick. It had burst the huge spider open - don't know if it was by fighting it or eating it. I took a photo. When I went back a bit later to look they had both gone so somehow it had managed to haul it off. Not sure what kind it was- you can see markings on its back in the photo. They yellow gunge is the insides of the huge spider.

I once had a huge spider living in the corner of my living room. He was the Giant House Spider variety, massive bugger he was. He had a web in the corner and would hang out there except for when we were watching TV at night when he would scare the shit out of us by running around on the carpet. We tolerated him through mutual respect.

Then my Mums terrier came to visit, and we watched in horror as he caught the spider and crunched him like a little hairy snack.

@HeIsAVeryBadBoy

When the spiderologists get here, can somebody tell me why they soon around like they are tripping balls if you try to paint the corner they live in? At first I thought it was air movement making them spin but I watched closely and they are doing it themselves? Bizarro.

He/she is threatening you/protecting its web. Like a human version of screaming and flailing your arms around so everyone leaves you alone

I accidentally knocked the web of one of my kitchen spiders and it did a very frantic spin for ages. I put a dead fly on its web as an apology, so hopefully it won’t follow me to bed and rub its willy on my face.

Like Tracy we have a cellar spider in our lounge. Well two.

Recently they cosied up and a few days later the web was sprinkled with babies. They eat big hairy spiders

I am scared of spiders (tho would never kill one) and just found a hairy fat one on my pillow next to me - I have moved it on (using a glass) but am now imagining I can see them everywhere and keep thinking I can feel them walking on me...suspect this will be a bad nights sleep.

I quite like the ones with tiny bodies and thin legs and they get to stay indoors as I hear they eat the scary ones, tho they obviously weren't very hungry tonight!

but otherwise he just there all day, and all night for all I know

At night, he pops upstairs and lovingly strokes your face while you sleep.

This reminded me of a spider from years ago. We had a downstairs toilet and shower room, and mostly tiled. There was a fairly large spider, that was always near the ceiling in the corner of the room. Sometimes it would move to the other corner over the shower area.Although it moved in secret, as nobody ever saw it moving. There was nothing for the spider to eat in there, although it might have had some moisture in there.

Anyhow, truthfully, it was in the shower room for more than two years, and my then, two young children,use to call in Sammy, and my son use to say he was going to find a few dead flies, and leave them on the windowsill,for the spider to eat.!

Thanks to all the Very Clever Spiderologists for the info about Stephanies. I will definitely leave them be in future and not candy floss their webs up with my feather duster.

I'm not an official spiderologist...but I have 21 pet tarantulas, 2 pet jumping spiders, and 2 pet ladybird spiders, so more spiderologist than the average person.

Most spiders actually hunt rather than have what we think of as the traditional spider web. He likely grabs things in passing, then he will web them up and likely drag them somewhere 'safe' to eat. He gets his moisture from his food. Spiders can drink - I have water dishes in all my tarantula enclosures - but you rarely see them drinking. It's there as a backup just in case so they don't get dehydrated but generally they're good with the moisture from food. It's hard to say what he is without a better photo though.

Once knocked a spider nest and all the babies fell down in a string...
Our resident spider is called Tracey and has 7 legs after a fly tape incident.. Not her or her babies though..

I have Paul the house spider to the left of my fireplace and Mary on the right. I first noticed them about 3 years ago. I would have had DP put them out but I heard on radio they were always more to take their place so I just left them there. Mary is a good girl and stays semi hidden. Paul is a prick and will run out to challenge anything near his house.

I keep those spindally legged cellar spiders around, they eat the big hairy ones with knees.

My spiders are Douglas and Alan.

If anyone wants to know what happens to all the baby spiders they see in their house, I’m fairly certain they move to my house and garden. This seems to be the local spider hang out place!

@Sunnydayshereatlast

Once knocked a spider nest and all the babies fell down in a string... Our resident spider is called Tracey and has 7 legs after a fly tape incident.. Not her or her babies though..

Tracey appears to have an 8 legged twin sister - either thay or she has grown back a leg?

I said at the end that wasn't Tracey! She is a very very skinny skinny hardly visible spider!!

This is our false widow...DH calls her Miss Death lol

No official spiderologists here, but our indoor spiders are given names beginning with S before being lovingly and tenderly transferred to oudoors. We have a particular soft spot for Steve the spider whom we “adopted” by buying the Waitrose plant on which he had made the most beautiful web, with (tragically) no prospect of catching any prey in the Waitrose gardening aisle. He now lives a contented aquilegia-based life in the garden.

This is my biggest boy. If he had free run of the house, I'm sure he'd keep the pests down! Lucky for him, I supply breakfast in bed and all inclusive service.

I feel rather freaked out now 😬

We have a few of them spindley ones (harvest spiders?) Knocking about. They only get evicted if they get too close to me.

One morning there was 3 on the living room ceiling, i was trying to tie dds hair up, and they kept gliding down their bum silk to try and land on my head- no matter where I went in the room they would follow. They got evicted pretty shaply after that.

He's probably sitting next to his hole, watching you and biding his time, waiting for the day when he grows big enough to catch you, your husband or your dog in his web.

Jesus God. What are you people doing???!!! You all need to move house- NOW! The image of a tarantula when you're scrolling down a thread is not one I need on a Monday morning I can tell you!!!

@BirdieDance to be fair...it's a threat about spiders. What else would you expect. It's not often I get an excuse to post a picture...I wouldn't usually cause people aren't on board with tarantulas but on a spider thread, they can get to shine in all their beauty.

Don’t kill him! Why would you 😔