''Parasteatoda tepidariorum'', the common house spider or American house spider, is a

spider Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species ...

species of the genus ''

Parasteatoda ''Parasteatoda'' is a genus of comb-footed spiders that was first described by Allan Frost Archer in 1946. The name is a combination of the Ancient Greek "para-" (), meaning "near" or "next to", and the theridiid genus ''Steatoda''. The Japanese ...

'' with a cosmopolitan distribution. Common house spiders are

synanthropic A synanthrope (from the Greek σύν ''syn'', "together with" + ἄνθρωπος ''anthropos'', "man") is a member of a species of wild animal or plant that lives near, and benefits from, an association with human beings and the somewhat artific ...

and live in and near human dwellings. Their prey mechanism is similar to that of the other

cobweb A spider web, spiderweb, spider's web, or cobweb (from the archaic word '' coppe'', meaning "spider") is a structure created by a spider out of proteinaceous spider silk extruded from its spinnerets, generally meant to catch its prey. Spi ...

spiders: the spider follows disturbances transmitted along the web to entangle and then paralyze its prey, which usually consists of household insects and other invertebrates (often considered as pests).

Description

Appearance

Common house spiders are variable in color from tan to nearly black, frequently with patterns of differing shades on their body. Females are generally between long, and males are generally between long. They can be an inch (2.5 cm) or more across with legs outspread. ''P. tepidariorum'' is similar in body shape to

widow spider ''Latrodectus'' is a broadly distributed genus of spiders with several species that are commonly known as the true widows. This group is composed of those often loosely called black widow spiders, brown widow spiders, and similar spiders. Howeve ...

s. Males have a less bulbous abdomen than females. Common house spiders' size and coloration allow the spiders to blend into the background and escape notice.

Life cycle

This species can live for more than a year after reaching maturity. Females suspend their

egg sac Spiders ( order Araneae) are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, chelicerae with fangs generally able to inject venom, and spinnerets that extrude silk. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species dive ...

s in their webs; the spherical egg sacs have a tan papery outer layer. Each egg sac contains from 150200 eggs, with a single female producing 1520 egg sacs in its lifetime. The spiderlings remain in the mother's web for several days after coming out of the egg sac.

Diet and predation

Common house spiders usually feed on small insects and household pests such as flies, mosquitoes, ants and wasps. They can randomly attack grasshoppers, butterflies, cockroaches or other spiders depending on their size. If the prey is too agile, the spider will try shooting web at it from a distance before pulling the thread toward itself. Bigger females can also attract baby

skink Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae, a family in the infraorder Scincomorpha. With more than 1,500 described species across 100 different taxonomic genera, the family Scincidae is one of the most diverse families of lizards. Ski ...

s inside their web by leaving fly remains hanging in it. Once its food dries out, the spider usually drops it to the floor in order to free space in its web, instead of destroying and rebuilding it or changing its location. Three spider species usually prey upon them: the pirate spiders of the genus ''

Mimetus ''Mimetus'' is a genus of pirate spiders in the family Mimetidae. They are found worldwide. Description Members of this genus resemble the comb-footed spiders, Theridiidae, due to their globular abdomen. The upper side of this bears curved brist ...

'' (

Mimetidae Pirate spiders, members of the family Mimetidae, are araneomorph spiders which typically feed on other spiders. The family Mimetidae contains roughly 200 species divided among 12 genera, of which '' Mimetus'' and ''Ero'' are the most common. Mi ...

), as well as two

jumping spider Jumping spiders are a group of spiders that constitute the family (biology), family Salticidae. As of 2019, this family contained over 600 described genera and over 6,000 described species, making it the largest family of spiders at 13% of all sp ...

species – ''

Phidippus ''Phidippus'' is a genus in the family Salticidae (jumping spiders). Some of the largest jumping spiders inhabit this genus, and many species are characterized by their brilliant, iridescent green chelicerae. ''Phidippus'' is distributed almost ...

variegatus'' and ''

Metacyrba ''Metacyrba'' is a genus of jumping spiders that was first described by Frederick Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1901. The name is combined from Ancient Greek "after, beside" and the salticid genus ''Cyrba''. Species it contains seven species an ...

undata UNdata is an Internet search engine, retrieving data series from statistical databases provided by the UN System. UNdata was launched in February 2008. It is a product of the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) developed in partnership with ...

''. The latter one often falls prey to its own food when it gets trapped in the tangling web after missing the jump on its target. The assassin bug '' Stenolemus lanipes'' (

Emesinae The Emesinae, or thread-legged bugs, are a subfamily of the Reduviidae (i.e., assassin bugs). They are conspicuously different from the other reduviids by their very slender body form. They are stalking, predatory insects that can be collected on ...

) apparently feeds exclusively on spiderlings of this species, but can also become prey of the adult spider.

Behavior

Interaction with other spiders

American house spider (Parasteatoda tepidariorum)

A male and female often share the same web for long periods, and several females often build their webs in close proximity. However, females will sometimes fight when they encounter each other.

Interaction with humans and predators

As these spiders live in constant proximity to

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, culture, ...

s, they are not usually aggressive and will even let a human hand approach their web. Common house spiders will bite humans only in self-defense, when grabbed and squeezed. The species' synanthropic habits, however, increase the risk of human bites. Common house spiders possess poor vision and cannot detect any movement more than three to four inches away. If cornered, they will feign death as last resort.

Toxicity

Common house spiders have

neurotoxic Neurotoxicity is a form of toxicity in which a biological, chemical, or physical agent produces an adverse effect on the structure or function of the central and/or peripheral nervous system. It occurs when exposure to a substance – specificall ...

venom. However, their bites are less severe than that of other theridiids and are "not known to be dangerous to humans".common house spider
on the UF /

IFAS IFAS may refer: * Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences * Integrated Fixed-Film Activated Sludge, a sewage treatment process * International French adjectival system In rock climbing, mountaineering, and other climbing disciplines, clim ...

Featured Creatures Web site.

Subspecies

Subspecies include ''P. tepidariorum australis'' (common gray house spider).

References

External links

* (2000)
''Achaearanea tepidariorum''
at

Animal Diversity Web Animal Diversity Web (ADW) is an online database that collects the natural history, classification, species characteristics, conservation biology, and distribution information on thousands of species of animals. The website includes thousands ...

{{Taxonbar, from=Q388278 Theridiidae Spiders described in 1841 Spiders of North America Spiders of South America Taxa named by Carl Ludwig Koch