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SPITTING SPIDER FACTS |
Description
The Spitting Spider is a small brown spider with a flecked pattern of spots. The dome-shaped carapace is unusual in that it slopes upwards towards the rear end, whereas the abdomen slopes downwards. It has six eyes arranged in three pairs. It has long stilt-like legs.
Size
Body length: male 4mm, female 6 mm
Habitat
caves, corners of open man-made structures such as sheds and bridges. In Northern Europe they are only to be found in houses.
Food
They catch their prey by spitting a fluid onto it that congeals on contact into a venomous sticky mass. They sway from side to side to cover the prey in a "Z" pattern. The spider strikes from a distance of 10-20mm. The attack takes under 1/700th of second!
Breeding
The female carries the egg mass under its body.
Notes
Not dangerous to humans as the fangs are small and cannot open wide
Classification
| Class: | Arachnida | | Order: | Araneomorphae | | Family: | Scytodidae | | Genus: | Scytodes | | Species: | thoracica | | Common Name: | Spitting Spider |
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