Sunday, November 4, 2012

Spider Sunday: A Common "Indoor" Spider

At this time of year, there is one spider that is commonly encountered indoors in the eastern United States and southeast Canada. It has a bi-colored body that makes it conspicuous and different from most other spiders one is likely to see around their residence. Trachelas tranquillus, is sometimes known as the “Broad-faced Sac Spider,” a member of the family Corinnidae.

This is a spider of average size, adult females measuring 7-10 millimeters in body length, males 5-6 millimeters. It occurs from Nova Scotia and Minnesota south to Kansas, Oklahoma, and northern Georgia, preferring deciduous woodlands. In nature, specimens are often found in retreats fashioned from curled leaves; or they are seen occasionally under stones.

I have seen this species hunting actively at night, prowling around porch lights where it may be hunting various insects attracted there. Trachelas does not spin a web, but does lay down draglines to help secure itself during climbs. Females probably also impregnate their draglines with pheromones (scents) so that males can track them down.


© Ken Lebo 2012

Mating usually happens in summer and early fall, after both genders have matured (nice images on the highlighted link). Females create a lens-shaped egg sac, the bottom flat against a substrate and the top slightly convex. The whole package is roughly ten millimeters long and usually attached beneath loose bark, or under a rock.

Besides killing live prey, Trachelas may scavenge on dead insects. Perhaps this is why it prospers when other spiders have either perished or gone into hiding in autumn. This scavenging habit may also influence the outcome in those rare instances when the spider bites a human. Secondary infections from its bite have been recorded, originally interpreted incorrectly as caused by the spider’s venom.


© Sarah Rose

The fact that Trachelas hunts regularly in and around homes and other buildings means it is more likely to have interaction with people. Still, verified cases of bites are infrequent, and usually result in only localized pain and swelling. People sensitive to arthropod venoms, or prone to allergic reactions, should seek medical attention for any arachnid bite (or sting in the case of scorpions).

Further complicating this picture is the confusion of Trachelas with another spider that is completely innocuous, though more intimidating. The Woodlouse Hunter, Dysdera crocata, is a specialized predator of woodlice, known commonly as “sowbugs,” “roly-polies,” or “pillbugs.” This species has exceptionally long jaws and fangs it uses to turn over its armored prey. While it looks dangerous, it is not.


Dysdera crocata © Nick Richter 2010

Dysdera is not native to North America, having been introduced from Europe at some point in our history. It has also become accustomed to prowling around human dwellings, so may be found indoors. It does not climb as well as Trachelas, however, and in my experience the Woodlouse Hunter prefers to hug baseboards.


Dysdera crocata © Sarah Rose

I encourage my readers to appreciate all spiders, but also act responsibly. It is a good idea to try and exclude spiders from entering your home and workplace by repairing worn weatherstripping on doors, mending holes in window screens, and sealing any cracks and crevices that could offer passage for insects and arachnids. Be careful when bringing objects indoors from outside, too, like firewood, gardening implements, children’s toys, and shoes and clothing left outdoors overnight.

Sources: Cox, Shelly. 2011. “Ground Sac Spider,” MoBugs blog.
Eaton, Eric R. and Amanda Howe. 2012. “Trachelas tranquillus (Ground Sac Spider),” Spiders.us.
Jacobs, Steve. 2002. ”Broad-faced Sac Spider,” Penn State University fact sheet.

49 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thank you, Michelle! Remember, you can e-mail me any images of "mystery bugs" and I'll do a write-up here. Bugeric24ATyahooDOTcom.

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    2. I believe one was just in my hair I was laying in my bed and my dogs just came in from outside and they were laying on my pillow above my head I felt something and it was a big belly grey spider scared me to death I flung it somewhere now cant find it with it continue to get in my bed or just crawl on walls as no if my cat finds it will it harm them if they eat it can it bite me or my dogs

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  2. Yes thank you very much! My son (4 years) just found one. Fortunately we've trained him well, he came and told me right away.

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  3. THANK YOU!!!! I found not one, BUT TWO Dysdera Crocata in my bed. I thought it was an Eric. I released them FAR FAR away from the house. :)

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  4. Thank you for all your info on the Trachelas tranquillus! I am currently suffering from a secondary infection (cellulitis) due to four or so bites on my ankle from one of these. (I think it was in my covers the other night.) I woke up the other morning with a fever of 103.6 and my leg was red and swollen. I didn't know what kind of spider bit me until I saw one in the living room that my 3 year old promptly squished, and one in the kitchen that I captured to find out what kind it was. I never thought much about these spiders because they aren't poisonous; but now that I have this crazy skin infection I think I'll be a little more cautious! Also, we have had a LOT of rain here lately so I'm guessing that's what's driving them inside? Either way, I plan on going around my house and making sure all points of entry are spider proof!!!!

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    1. Christie: Get well soon! Infections are nothing to mess with....In the absence of a spider under the bed linens, or witnessed in the act of biting, I would be hesitant to conclude that you were bitten by a spider. Many other illnesses can produce symptoms that mimic an insect or spider bite and we are generally too quick to jump to conclusions. Do take care, heal quickly.

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  5. Saw one of these this morning just outside my patio door (where the light is). It panicked and dropped down on a web line when the dogs and I went out the door, so I could see the legs very clearly. I thought it was a very pretty spider with those red legs. I have what I call the "Spider House Rules"--if you area a spider, and you come in the house, you die. I tend to leave the outdoor ones alone except for taking down their webs where I will walk through them. Anyway, this post was very helpful; it's only 7:45 and I've already achieved my goal of learning something new every day.

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    1. Thank you so much for the compliment, and for sharing your experience. "Spider House Rules." Love it!

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  6. Hi! i recently captured one of these in my house and im keeping it as a pet, took a while to figure out what it was because it just sits under a leaf all day. My question is what do i feed it? i gave it some poll bugs but it doesnt seem to attack them just gets more annoyed then anything (maybe because the lights are on?) and i have a cap in its cage with water in it, is this a good source? thanks

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    1. Often, newly-captured creatures will not eat due to stress....but a small cricket or other soft-bodied insect should be acceptable in a few days....Water needs to be provided in a sponge pad or cotton ball or something so the spider won't drown. Good luck.

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    2. Why on earth would you want to keep this nasty thing as a pet? I just killed one on my living room rug although I think he's what woke me up and I just knocked him off of me while I was itching my arm. I don't know either way I won't be sleeping anymore tonight��

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  7. Saw a trachelas tranquillus in my kitchen. I put her in a mason jar and placed her outside in a bushy area. But I have no doubts she'll figure out how to get back into my house.

    Oh well, as long as it goes into the basement.

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    1. Wonderful comment! Made me smile at your kindness, and laugh a little at your expected result. Thank you. :-)

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    2. I saw one of these in my bathtub, I am against killing any bug that isn't attacking me (basically I go after mosquitoes and leave the crawlers alone), so I let it do its thing while I went to look up what kind of spider this was (first encounter, very pretty).
      Though I went back to the bathroom to find my dumb cat blindly going to sit right on it (I picked him up before he did) and now I am a little worried he might get bitten, though I cannot locate the spider anymore... are they likely to bite pets, or am I worrying for nothing? :<
      I am hoping this spider will just disappear without being a bother to us haha

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    3. "Unknown" on Sept. 17....I would not worry. Most spiders don't bite in self-defense unless under dire circumstances. I don't think a cat's butt qualifies. LOL!

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  8. I recently have found 2 small red spiders in the house, one on a couch cushion in the living room, and one on the kitchen cabinets. I thought were Wood Louse Spiders, but had Red and White chevron pattern on the abdomen, which was wiggled defiantly at me, when I discovered them. I thought that was quite bold for maybe 8mm of spider. Can't find any information on them.

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  9. Man, i was bite today by a Dysdera Crocata...initial bite was like being pricked by a needle.
    Initial pain was very intense, puncture in 2 points on the palm of my right hand.
    One of the fangs just break inside the skin, was very hard to extract it.
    Pain disappear after 6 hours.
    Cheers!

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  10. Reminds me of a story... I heard my wife scream bloody murder one morning in the bathroom. I thought the toilet had fallen through the floor with her still attached. I can't remember what I said in reply, but it was something like, "Honey Dear, most precious, are you okay?"
    She yelled, "SPIDER!!"
    I said politely and patiently, "What kind?"
    She said, "What in Heaven's name kind of question is that? KILL IT!"

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    1. This post was read while sipping my coffee with a very messy result. lol TOO FUNNY! Thank you for the laugh... I needed it! I keep having encounters with these spiders in my room, including an ‘under the covers’ experience, which was extraordinarily unpleasant. I don’t like to kill things, but all 8 legged, fanged creatures in my bed are a big HELL NO for me. In the horror of it all, I actually killed it with my hand. I knew that if I didn’t whack it immediately, it would disappear and I would never sleep again! Let’s face it... we are all just inhabiting THEIR world. If they ever develop collective consciousness, it’s all over for us! lol Have a good day!

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    2. Thank you so much for the wonderful commentary! <3

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  11. I have Found now 3 within the last month. All inside my house.Shoes I haven't touched in awhile.And in a drawer that I was digging in last night before my 3rd encounter.Which was yesterday. I was at my computer in my office and out of the corner of my eye, I see a spider crawling up my shoulder. I instinctively grabbed it and quickly dropped it on my glass desk in front of me. Since I had two others... I already knew what I had. Ill go on a bender of research after each. I found out by finally getting to use the "BIXBY" feature on my camera (SAMSUNG S8), which you can take a picture of something and it will search the Web to gind any and all information or sites on the subject matter. A bottle of wine a car u cant remember the year of. Or in this case... a spider you cant identify.In which it led me to many websites, and I chose this one. So here I am! Super glad to have found someone who knows what they are talking about for once. So thank you for that! I guess I'm just reconfirming that it doesn't want to harm me.What ive seen is they seem to play dead a little bit. Every one Ive had to grab or pick up quickly. So I think when I've done that, I've injured a leg or 2 like the one yesterday. I mean it was after all crawling up my shoulder, heading right towards my face! So that startled me enough to react in grabbing. I will say my cats were quite interested! Which kind of scares me the most because they will play, hurt and kill most any insect in my house! As a matter of fact , I've seen one of my cats jump in mid air and snatch a fly with its mouth! Wish I had that one in slow motion high def! Its a bangle. So its basically a small tiger or leapord.(22 lbs...And not fat) Anyway, thank you sir for You're very accurate and informative description and knowledge of these little punks! You have helped calm one of my 2 hated things. Snakes being tge other. I don't trust animals that can't be trained. Sorry, but at the end of the day, I'm a spider killer! Alot like the "Spider House Rules" person. But my house is more... I doubt you're gonna make it out! Unless its a snake. Then it can stay... I'll leave.😂 Its not the bite that I dont like. I just dont like the fact they werent invited! Control freak maybe.🤔 Thanks again for all your settling information!🤙🕸🕷

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    1. Wow, thank you for the compliments, you made my day! Meanwhile, your own writing is truly captivating and unique. You should have your own blog if you don't already. Thank you so much for your comments!

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  12. hii
    how can i email you a picture of one. im not sure if its tge same one but sure looks like it. i been finding them in my home and just today found one in my baby crib.

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    1. Click on the "forum" tab at the top of this page. The question format allows attachments of images.

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  13. Good morning,

    I have found now two of these spiders in 24hours. One on the wall about two feet up from the base boards and one traveling across my kitchen floor. I am very curious as to if there is a nest somewhere around??? I have three small children, the oldest being fascinated by them and the middle child scared, and the boy well he jumps right on in at them. It is scary as a mother because the spiders do look very scary. I will do my best and sealing the house up!!!! Can you please tell me if I there is a nest somewhere being that I found two in one day in two different parts of the house. By the way I live in Arizona and my backyard is dirt with rocks. Help please??????

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    1. They do not "nest." They are only scary if you are unfamiliar with arachnids. You are already taking proper precautions, and I don't believe you or your children are in any danger from them, assuming it is indeed the same genus/species.

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  14. I was just bitten by trachelas a few moments ago and found this page while exploring the possible culprit. Fits it to a tee. There's quite a bit of swelling but no pain, the bite was leaking but hads stopped. Does anyone know what sorts of signs I should watch out for that might imply an infection?

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  15. I live in Minneapolis Minnesota and I was handling an old shirt that was in a box for years when I felt a sting on my palm and looked down to see a spider. I found this post and initially thought I was bitten by this broad-faced sac spider (trachelas tranquillus). After some more research I now believe I was bitten by a woodlouse spider (dysdera crocata). The picture in this article of the woodlouse spider is not as good as other pictures I found. It looks almost identical to the broad-faced sac spider, but from my research is more likely to bite humans. The pain lasted only a few seconds, no bleeding, no swelling, no other problems, just a few seconds of pain similar to a bee sting or vaccine needle.

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  16. Just found one in my bathroom in Michigan. I have a pic but it won't let me upload it in the comments.

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  17. Hello! Wonderful write up. I found what I believe to be a female spider last night. She initially scared me...I was in the bathroom as she scurried past my toes. But then I saw her coloring and became intrigued! We have very harsh New Hampshire winters here and I was wondering if you know A.) Their lifespan? AND B.) If I release her can she survive the snow and cold?
    I think this spider is pretty amazing on how they will adapt to eating dead bugs to survive. Shes pretty and wasn't at all aggressive. I will provide shelter for the winter for her if she can't survive out there. Thank you for any more additional help you may be able to educate me with! Blessed day!

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  18. I just found one like that in my house in Idlep Syria with black hed .. I will send you a pic.. reply me to know you are there

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  19. I think one bit my cat...does anyone know symtoms to look out for? I have the vets tomorrow anyways will mention i found one in my living room

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  20. I found one of these guys in my home in Michigan last night, and it scared the CRAP out of me. I had previous positively identified sightings of brown recluses in my home, and as soon as I saw that familiar stripe down it's back I went into full panic mode. After sending a photo to the Entomologist I had previously worked with, he determined it was not a recluse, but a broad-faced sac spider. After doing my research, I certainly don't want these guys getting close enough to take a bite, but I'm relieved that despite their similar markings, I don't have another recluse problem. Thanks for sharing some info!

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  21. Got bit by broad sac two nights ago right over top of my elbow. Swelling and pain feels like a wasp sting (and yes I've been stung by a wasp, bees, hornets, yellow jacks, spiders, & a jelly fish, and yes I'm very lucky). It happened at night in my bed it woke me out of my sleep which made me slap my arm finding spider in bed with me. Now I'm super creeped out looking for spiders!

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  22. I think I just killed one right by my 9 months old crib and my headboard but I am not sure as I can't find it after trying to smooch it with a shoe. We live in an old historic building an I have been trying not to kill the spiders as they arent posinous but this makes me super nervous to sleep at night

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  23. I just got bit by one of these guys. What do I need to do?

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    1. I do hope you are ok and/or recover quickly, but for many reasons I cannot supply medical advice. Thank you for understanding.

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  24. Ana here. I found one on the wall yesterday but I'm in a arachnid group on Facebook called Antman's Hill where I posted the photo and they gave me an ID. Then I searched the net for more info.
    I don't kill spiders in my house, I just let them be. Or I save them, like the huge Wolfie in my 2 gallon tiny pond.Although if one falls onto me from a ceiling, it's getting flicked. But I do like to learn about them, hence being in a spider group.
    While I never killed spiders, I didn't know few things, like black widows being really docile but brown widows, while less venomous, more aggressive.
    I'm in California, bay area, and I'd love to see any of the tarantula species.

    The one I saw yesterday seemed little dehydrated and I placed a drop of water in front of it with a q-tip but it just turned it's nose at it and crawled away. Maybe it preferred booze lol?
    Anyways, thanks for the info.

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    1. Nice to meet you, Ana! I like your sentiments and sense of humor. :-)

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  25. Is there any way to deter these spiders from going near us at night? My daughter just found one in her room .. we made a homemade peppermint spray and sprayed the bedsheets. Holding this will help us sleep better. We are very afraid of spiders here. Never encountered this one before on Long Island.

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    1. Funny, I just googled to find out what type of spider this is bc I also live on LI and this is the second one I found in our bathroom and don’t recall ever seeing this type of spider before.

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  26. Just found one in my bathroom. I usually don’t bother with any spiders in the house, but something about this one’s appearance made me apprehensive. After identifying it with my app, it went down the drain. Don’t want any spider bites.

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  27. I seen this spider in my home in the desert in California. At least the first picture. And it says you only see them in the Eastern United States and Canada. They look scary because I couldn't figure out what they are

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  28. I seen one in my daughters bassinet and I freaked out because I didn't know what it was. I also got bit on the boob and pretty sure it could have been from the spider because my daughters bassinet is next to my bed.

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  29. I was just bitten by one of these about 30 minutes ago. It bit my hand while I was sleeping and it was a rude awakening. I saw it and killed it right away. I then went online to research what type of spider it was and what to expect. It bit me in the center of my palm and the pain is now in my wrist. I may need to get it checked out come morning. What a way to spend Labor Day. Thank you for helping me identify my attacker by placing such a clear photo.

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