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Giant House Spider
Tegenaria duellica
47.6623, -122.664
Field Notes
Description:
The Giant house spider (Tegenaria duellica; formerly known as T. gigantea) is a member of the genus Tegenaria and is a close relative of both the Domestic house spider and the infamous Hobo spider. The bite of this species does not pose a threat to humans or pets, although it is the only species of the whole Agelenid family to be able to bite through human skin proper (altogether).
Habitat:
The Giant house spider is indigenous to north western Europe. However, it was unwittingly introduced to the Pacific Northwest of North America circa 1900 due to human activity and strongly increased in numbers for the last decade.
The webs built by the Giant house spider are flat and messy with a funnel at one end. The spider lurks in the funnel until a small invertebrate happens to get trapped in the web, at which point the spider runs out and attacks it.
They usually build their webs in corners (on both the floor and ceiling), between boxes in basements, behind cupboards, in attics, or any other area that is rarely disturbed by large animals, or humans. Often found near window openings.
Males can often be seen wandering around houses during the late summer and early autumn looking for a mate.
Notes:
In the last picture you can clearly see the entire width of the siding panel. This is actually a span of 5 1/2 inches. This is a VERY large example of this spider.
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