Tube Web Spiders

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Latin name:  Segestria florentina

Size:  Males can be between 10 and 16mm long.  The females average between 15 and 23mm long

Distribution:  Found mainly in southern England

Months seen:  June to October

Habitat:  Under stones or logs, and in holes in walls, trees and wooden fences

Food:  Flies, beetles and other small insects

Special features:  The Tube Web Spider is one of the largest spiders you're likely to encounter in the UK.  It's a nocturnal spider and so during the day it usually hides away inside its tubular shaped retreat.  This is usually a hole or a crack in a wall or fence.

This spider has six eyes which are arranged in three groups of two.  The abdomen is long and cylindrical, and the first three pairs of legs all point forwards.  The jaws are an iridescent green colour, and the bite is very painful.

The tubular retreat hole is lined with silk.  The entrance to the tube is surrounded by silk trip wires, arranged like spokes of a wheel.  When another invertebrate passes by and accidentally touches one of these trip wires it alerts the spider to the presence of a potential meal.

Eggs are laid in the tubular retreat and the female guards the young until they disperse.  Sometimes the mother dies before they disperse, and she is eaten by her young.

The Tube Web Spider is frequently found around the locations of ports and docks, which would indicate it was probably introduced to the UK some time ago on ships or their cargo.

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