False widows being hunted

comerla

I came across one of those amazing scenes you occasionally see in nature last nigh - thought it was worth sharing.

We have a tunnel type web up at the top of our lean-to:

The spider curled up in here behind the circle never moves during the day: I thought it was just a big house spider. The Lean-to has quite a few false widows - some of them pretty big - but I've noticed some of them have been disappearing - there for a while and then gone (especially in this area). I also wondered how a native Irish spider was able to survive in an environment with so many false widows (after reading the research that FWs have 100* the venom potency of Irish spiders).

As I was coming in I saw movement up at the web and the spider in the web here was in the process of biting and finishing off a False Widow. Another Widow was attracted by the movement, started moving in towards the 'house spider' and his kill. The bigger spider dropped what he was doing and moved extremely fast - attacking the other widow. The widow dragged itself away spinning webs at the bigger spider. After a moment the bigger spider looked banjaxed for a short while - legs twitching. A minute later he picked himself up and started stalking the widow again. The Widow continued to drag itself as fast as it could to the other side of the Lean-to.

From reading up on this looks like it might be a Tube Web spider (Segestria florentina) or maybe a mouse spider. Would be interested in any insights anyone might have on this.

iwillhtfu

Yep fairly sure there's some truth in that. I have the very same spider living up in a corner of the garage and I have noticed false widows seem to be fewer than they once were in there. They're lightning quick and the false widows I've seen are quite slow in comparison and tend to turtle when attacked.

I don't think they're the spiders you mention though. Seems to just be a big house spider now I've looked in it. Same story not active during the day but very active at night

comerla

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120398919#Comment_120398919

Great to see something keeping them in check! Will take some photos later when its dark and they're all out and about again..

iwillhtfu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120398923#Comment_120398923

Yeah the FW was a bit of a nuisance as they were forever crawling into the kids toys. Thankfully none have been bitten not that I'd be concerned but there's always that chance they'd be allergic.

This is our resident doormans web 😂 Usually just sits beside his last meal there.

surely no native Irish spider is able to kill a false widow… not any house spider I’ve seen… or want to see 🥹

iwillhtfu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120398945#Comment_120398945

I'd tend to agree with you but I guess you're either hunter or prey and this fella used to be surrounded by FW and now it's just him on his own.

magicbastarder

would the native spiders be better cold adapted and able to move faster at lower temps, possibly?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399017#Comment_120399017

Bigger is better… have you a pic of this spider out of its web?

comerla

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399037#Comment_120399037

Doubt it - the Widows are well able to move. Size is a factor I'd say. He definitely got a bite last night that knocked it out of him (I thought he was a goner) but he shook it off.

Will try and get a good photo later and hopefully someone who knows what they're talking about can ID.

iwillhtfu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120399067#Comment_120399067

I'll try grab one later but he's right over the door so usually runs as soon as I walk in. Looks like one of the large spiders you'd see running across the floor in the house at the start of winter.

Like this google pic

iwillhtfu

Best I could get. He's very camera shy 🤷‍♂️

magicbastarder

If it's a big one, probably a she.

iwillhtfu

True although assuming anything these days is my first mistake 🙈

Could just be a really lucky spider but whatever it's doing it can keep doing it. We do have a hungry robin nesting nearby also so he could be keeping the FW to a minimum.

comerla

Mine is being shy aswell - will keep an eye out and see if I can get a better shot later. This should give you an idea of the size

iwillhtfu

Looks very similar and a fw in shot aswell. Almost a grudge match 😂

magicbastarder

this is one of the inhabitants of my shed, albeit taken a year ago. not sure if she's still around.

a good two inches across.

Are they another false widow?!

iwillhtfu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120401048#Comment_120401048

That one above isn't a false widow but it would certainly give the auld ticker a jump start. 😬

I think that's a wolf spider or at least a sibling or on further google fu I see we have a brown recluse spider over here. https://www.rentokil.ie/spiders/species/ I never knew that https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_recluse_spider

^^^ I’m not sure bigger than false widow spiders being here is so reassuring. Might be time to launch into space and Nuke Ireland.

apache

I'd die if I came across one of these.

magicbastarder

spiders are bleedin' great. happy enough to share the shed with that lady.

comerla

Here it is...

CYHSN

On the topic of false widows, I had this fella staring back at me tonight, considering they are invasive I wanted to double check before I do kill it

https://ibb.co/Wsd2jtM

https://ibb.co/SsHTyFF

https://ibb.co/pj95F44

I can recommend a vacuum cleaner.

Boardnashea

Really interesting OP.

If you want to get her out of her web for a photo shoot, bring out your electric toothbrush, without the brush head, and place the operating metal tip on the edge of the web. It is like the smell of bacon for me! Has me out of bed like a shot! She will come charging out for lunch. Just make sure you have your camera ready.

comerla

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120499745#Comment_120499745

Great idea - worked well. I've been keeping an eye on this area since - and there are no widows at all in this area and the rest of the Lean To is infested. She moves quickly!

https://streamable.com/px8bq7

Have we found out what type of spider this heroic Irish spider is?

comerla

Seems to look very like  iwillhtfu's pic - which is of a giant house spider.

Can’t open

Boardnashea

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120501140#Comment_120501140

Well done. I hope you flossed too! 😊

10-10-20

I can tell a similar story about my steel shed.

It was invaded by false-widow spiders soon after it was installed in 2009 and they were notable by their scattered web shape, bulbous bodies and threatening demeanor. Over the covid lockdown I noticed a false-widow which was annoyingly at the back of my tool box, but I left him there doing his thing. He had flies, spiders and woodlouse shells thrown around the lid of the box, a real sign of his cannibalistic ways.

Directly above the toolbox was a light-switch which is mounted with a 2cm gap at it's rear due to the corrugated shape of the shed walls. Within this gap a large wolf/house spider setup house last summer and was regularly seen with his legs poking out, but would hide if the switch was flicked. Soon after the wolf appeared the local false-widow disappeared and as of about November I could find no false-widows in their usual hiding spots!

I'm not saying that the wolf chased or ate all of the false-widows, but as of April I still don't have the same population of spiders to what I used to have, but a lot of the dense conical webs under the shed window appear to be back.

I dunno, I'll review again in mid/late summer and see what I see.