false widow info pls......

[jakomo1800]

I am very new to the sight and from reading threads on here it seems the best place to get info so anyone can help me pls???

I have seen the standard obvious false widow before on my window st night, brown, markings on its larger shiny bulbous abdomen, a really easy to id specimen, however this morning found similar spider inside my house with same colour and markings but not a particular abdomen. Is this still a false widow? are there other spiders with brown shiny bodies?
Also ive seen alot of false widows outside - is this not the wrong time of year to be seeing more of them? i'm in bournemouth and fully aware they are quite common but not keen on them in the house with my children, any info greatly appreciated.

regards Tania

[No.9 Spider]

False Widow is a name given to members of the Steatoda family as they bear a (vague when you are familiar with them) resemblance to members of the 'Widow' family of Latrodectus.

A photograph would be helpful to confirm which 'false widow/s' you are looking at. They are not really a problem and are not out to get you, bites only occurring rarely if they are trapped in bedsheets/clothing and in contact with you where they feel threatened. You can move them outside if you're not happy with them indoors, but it will become a bit of a chore. It's not uncommon at this time of year to see many about, and yes there are other spider species with shiny round abdomens but they tend to be smaller, the round shiny abdomens of 'false widows' are generally a good diagnostic feature.
Just respect and observe them .


No.9 Spider

[John_M]

There are several different species called false widows, although they're all in the genus Steatoda. Males tend to look a bit different to females too.
There is no need to worry about having them in your house, even with children; the spiders are not aggressive and they are not dangerous. I have 2 children, and several Steatodas in my house. One in my bathroom ate a Tegenaria yesterday. I have two on my kitchen ceiling and they ignore me. I have no idea how many are in my garden, but it's a lot; I have never had a problem with them. My 5 year old daughter quite happily handles them, and has never been bitten.
If you can post a photo, I'm sure someone can identify the spider for you.

Edit: beat to it by No. 9

[jakomo1800]

Thank you both so much for your replies, I moved the spider I found this morning outside and realised as soon as id done so i should have taken a picture, the false widow that is on the outside is the common one i think - brown with like a diamond crest type markings on the very large abdomen, very shiny with lighter browny beige markings in the the middle, the one inside this morning was very very similar but not a typical widow tummy.

Really nice to know that people have these spiders in their homes with children - i always worry my son will disturb one in the garden and get bit, i do completely understand the media has made this out to be the end of days which is why I came to you guys for advice,

I had tried to find if there were other spiders with a shiny body like a false widow but only got back false widows are like the black widow - with a disturbing thread of stay away from all false widows - these deliver a nasty bite while alseep in bed!!!!!

I.m guessing the one inside my house was prob not a false widow then but another kind instead - the sad thing is until someone told me bout these supposedly killer false widows i would not have been bothered or even looked, I'm gussing i'm not the only one thats been scared by stories but figured people and children would be dropping like flies if they are as bad as have been told.

like I said wanted to get some real info from people who would know.

Regards tania

[John_M]

It's quite possible the spider inside was a male, they tend to have smaller abdomens. You could try looking in the WAB Gallery or google images for Steatoda grossa, S. bipunctata, S. nobilis; see if any of those match the one you saw.
Don't believe newspaper reports about dangerous spiders; there are no dangerous spiders native to the UK unless you are a prey species

[jakomo1800]

I cant see a pic for sure that does look like it. Do you know of any others that have the shiny body???

Thank you again for all your help

[John_M]

There are others with shiny bodies, but I think they're all smaller than Steatoda; what length was the spider?
You could have a look at this page

Thumbnails to identify spiders in NW_Europe
and see if there's anything that looks like what you saw; bear in mind that spider markings can be quite variable, and most species can really only be positively identified by looking at the palps or epigyne under magnification.

[John_M]

There are others with shiny bodies, but I think they're all smaller than Steatoda; what length was the spider?
You could have a look at this page

Thumbnails to identify spiders in NW_Europe
and see if there's anything that looks like what you saw; bear in mind that spider markings can be quite variable, and most species can really only be positively identified by looking at the palps or epigyne under magnification.