barn funnel weaver

(Tegenaria domestica)

Conservation Status
IUCN Red List

not listed

NatureServe

NNR - Unranked

Minnesota

not listed

 
barn funnel weaver
Photo by Joy
 
Description

Barn funnel weaver is an exotic, medium sized, house funnel-web spider. It is native to Europe, Central Asia, North Africa, and the Middle East. In was introduced into North America, probably with some of the first European settlers. It now occurs throughout the United States and southern Canada, but it is most common between the 40th and 50th parallels.

In its native region, barn funnel weaver is found in caves and in hollow trees. In North America it is usually found in the basement of human houses, in neglected buildings, and in gardens adjacent to those houses and buildings. Its widespread expansion has been made possible through the movement of humans.

Females are ¼ to 716 (7 to 11 mm) in length. The legspan is ¾ to 1 316 (20 to 30 mm). Males are smaller, ¼ to 516 (6.5 to 8.5 mm) in length. The body is hairy and yellowish brown, orangish brown, reddish brown, or beige (pale) with dark markings.

The front part of the body (cephalothorax) is longer than wide and much narrower in front than behind. The rear portion (thoracic region) is large, broadly rounded when viewed from above, and relatively flat when viewed from the side. The front portion (head region) is small, higher, straight sided, and narrow, about half as wide as the thoracic region. The upper part of the cephalothorax (carapace) is pale. There is a thin dark line on each lateral margin, and a pair of broad dark stripes in the middle extending from the eye region to the rear margin. The stripes are solid and unbroken. They have clean, straight edges, and they do not merge at the rear.

There are eight eyes arranged in two rows of four eyes each. The front row is almost straight, and the eyes in the front row are equally spaced. The anterior median eyes (AME) are smaller than the anterior lateral eyes (ALE). In the rear row, the eyes are almost equally spaced, and they are all about the same size. The jaw-like mouthparts (chelicerae) are slightly convex. Each chelicera has a very prominent, distinctly raised mound (condyle) on the outer side near the base, and a fang at the end. The fang rests in a groove (furrow). The lower margin of the furrow has 3 to 6 teeth.

The abdomen is pale with a dark cardiac mark on the front half and three longitudinal rows of dark spots on the rear half. The spots in the median row are chevron shaped. The spinnerets are not as long as on other funnel weavers (Family Agelenidae), and they are often not visible from above.

The legs are very long. They are ringed, but the rings are often indistinct. The fifth segment (tibia) of each leg has two pairs of spines.

 

Size

Female Body Length: ¼ to 716 (7 to 11 mm)

Male Body Length: ¼ to 516 (6.5 to 8.5 mm)

Legspan: ¾ to 1 316 (20 to 30 mm)

 

Web

The web is flat sheet with a funnel in a corner or on a side that leads to a retreat. There is a concave pattern of snare lines above the sheet.

 

Similar Species

 
Habitat

The basement of human houses, other buildings, and gardens

Biology

Season

Year round indoors, but it will not survive a Minnesota winter in an unheated space.

 

Behavior

 

 

Life Cycle

Eggs overwinter in the web and hatch in the spring.

 

Food

 

Distribution

Distribution Map

 

Sources

24, 29, 30, 82, 83.

10/28/2024    
     

Occurrence

Common

Taxonomy
Class

Arachnida (arachnids)

Order

Araneae (spiders)

Suborder

Araneomorphae (typical spiders)

Infraorder

Entelegynae

Zoosection

RTA clade

Zoosubsection

Marronoid (meshweavers and allies)

Family

Agelenidae (funnel weavers)

Subfamily

Ageleninae (typical funnel weavers)

Genus

Tegenaria (house funnel-web spiders)

   

Subordinate Taxa

 

   

Synonyms

Agelena civilis

Agelena familiaris

Arachne familiaris

Aranea annulata

Aranea civilis

Aranea derhamii

Aranea domestica

Aranea flava

Aranea longipes

Aranea tomentosa

Araneus domesticus

Chalinura longipes

Coelotes amygdaliformis

Coelotes plumarius

Draconarius amygdaliformis

Drassina ochracea

Hersilia longipes

Mevianops fragilis

Nyssa familiaris

Philoica civilis

Tegenaria amygdaliformis

Tegenaria civilis

Tegenaria cretica

Tegenaria derhami

Tegenaria detestabilis

Tegenaria domestica

Tegenaria domesticoides

Tegenaria dubia

Tegenaria fontium

Tegenaria fragilis

Tegenaria longipes

Tegenaria modesta

Tegenaria ochracea

Tegenaria scalaris

   

Common Names

barn funnel weaver (North America)

barn funnel weaving spider

common house spider

domestic house spider (Europe)

drain spider

European house spider

lesser European house spider

ubiquitous house spider

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glossary

Carapace

The hard, upper (dorsal), shell-like covering (exoskeleton) of the body or at least the thorax of many arthropods and of turtles and tortoises. On crustaceans, it covers the cephalothorax. On spiders, the top of the cephalothorax made from a series of fused sclerites.

 

Cardiac mark

An oval dark mark on the front half of the abdomen of some spiders, beneath which lies the heart.

 

Cephalothorax

The front part of the body of various arthropods, composed of the head region and the thoracic area fused together. Eyes, legs, and antennae are attached to this part.

 

Chelicerae

The pair of stout mouthparts, corresponding to jaws, in arachnids and other arthropods in the subphylum Chelicerata.

 

Tibia

The fourth segment of an insect leg, after the femur and before the tarsus (foot). The fifth segment of a spider leg or palp.

 

 

 

 

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Joy

Identify a spider please

this spider has been in an outside window area and lines up flies in a special area - they also shed their exoskeleton - I am wondering where it should be to survive the winter?

barn funnel weaver   barn funnel weaver
     
barn funnel weaver   barn funnel weaver
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Other Videos

Hobo Spider, Giant House Spider, and Barn Funnel Weaver Part 2 - The Spiders in Your House
Travis McEnery

About

Dec 6, 2023

Part 2 of an in-depth look at three closely-related spiders: the Giant House spider (Eratigena atrica), the Barn Funnel Weaver (Tegenaria domestica), and the controversial Hobo spider (Eratigena agrestis). In this video, I explore the story of the Hobo spider's reputation, and look into the evidence regarding whether a hobo spider bite really causes necrotic lesions. I also talk to Rick Vetter and Dr. Greta Binford (a couple of the actual scientists who were involved), and cheese-test all three species.

All un-credited photos and video herein are my own; all others are credited in video.

Basement Spiders - Tegenaria domestica
Chao Jimmy Wu *Mantisman630*

About

Jul 2, 2016

Two Tegenaria domestica which have built webs next to one another. One of the two individuals have caught a fly which was attracted to the light of the outside world and hit the web of the spider. This species was introduced to the new world and has established itself in many parts of the planet.

Harmless Barn Funnel Weaver (Tegenaria Domestica) in Colorado
AMGTarantulas

About

Apr 9, 2024

I apologize for the shaky cam, I have tremors like an elderly person, though I am only 30. Haha! Also I jump scare easily, you may see me jump back when the t's move occasionally!

I believe this is a Barn Funnel Weaver (Tegenaria Domestica) found last year in Bear Creek Lake Park in Colorado on a bridge. They are harmless, please leave them alone... They're just catching bugs! This species is very skittish, they will retreat before they ever bite. Their bite is not even likely to break the skin but if it does it is said to be equivalent discomfort to a bee sting.

 

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Joy
10/13/2024

Location: Mound, Mn

barn funnel weaver

John Valo
10/14/2024

This spider is a funnel weaver spider, most likely – almost certainly - barn funnel weaver.

These spiders usually live just one year. Adults do not survive the winter, but the eggs do survive. They overwinter in the web and hatch in the spring. Adults may live up to two years if they are indoors.

Joy
10/16/2024

Thanks for the info!  Should I put the screen with everything on it in the basement or an Un-heated garage or just the ground for the eggs to get loose next spring?

John Valo
10/16/2024

If you bring it indoors, it will be active – and hunting – all winter. Also, the eggs may hatch in the warm environment. The answer to your question depends on whether you want to bring spiders into your house. If you want the eggs to survive the winter, they should be in a sheltered but unheated location, off the ground and protected from snow, wind, and maybe sun.

Good luck!

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Created: 10/28/2024

Last Updated:

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