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Amber,
Yes, looks like one of the Oecobius. Would like specimens anyway so we
actually would have a record of occurrence. You could keep live ones as pets;
they don't take up much room. It would be interesting to know what they are
eating since many records list ants as a preferred food item.
Don't know if anything is actually attracting them; the population is already
in the building. Maybe local conditions moving them away from the normal areas
in which they live. You are basically finding large ones, adults and not
very small spiderlings. Although maybe spiderlings are not around this time of
year. Maybe you're not seeing webs because the spiders are leaving webs and
crawling about, at least, the males would do this.
Lou
Louis N. Sorkin, B.C.E.
Entomologist, Arachnologist
Division of Invertebrate Zoology
American Museum of Natural History
Central Park West at 79th Street
New York, New York 10024-5192
sor...@amnh.orgmailto:sor...@amnh.org
212-769-5613 voice
212-769-5277 fax
The New York Entomological Society, Inc.
www.nyentsoc.orghttp://www.nyentsoc.org/
n...@amnh.orgmailto:n...@amnh.org
From: ad...@museumpests.net [mailto:ad...@museumpests.net] On Behalf Of Morgan,
Amber
Sent: Monday, February 18, 2013 11:13 AM
To: pestlist@museumpests.net
Subject: [pestlist] FW: spider identification
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Hi Louis,
Thanks for the info - I'm sending better photos with a ruler for scale. The
spiders are less than 1/16th of an inch long. We have not seen any webs yet.
The areas we've found them in don't have windows, so I'm not sure where to
look, but it's possible we are vacuuming them up before we get a chance to see
them. If you'd really like me to send you one I can, but they are all stuck on
sticky traps so I'm not sure how well they will travel.
Generally spiders don't trouble me, but this increase in tiny spider population
makes me wonder if there is something else going on that is attracting them.
Thanks,
Amber
From: ad...@museumpests.netmailto:ad...@museumpests.net
[mailto:ad...@museumpests.net] On Behalf Of Louis Sorkin
Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 6:23 PM
To: pestlist@museumpests.netmailto:pestlist@museumpests.net
Subject: [pestlist] FW: spider identification
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It is a male spider, but I was looking at a postage stamp size image and now
I'm wondering if it's possible, Amber, to send some over for examination just
to be sure.
Louis N. Sorkin, B.C.E.
Entomologist, Arachnologist
Division of Invertebrate Zoology
American Museum of Natural History
Central Park West at 79th Street
New York, New York 10024-5192
sor...@amnh.orgmailto:sor...@amnh.org
212-769-5613 voice
212-769-5277 fax
The New York Entomological Society, Inc.
www.nyentsoc.orghttp://www.nyentsoc.org/
n...@amnh.orgmailto:n...@amnh.org
From: ad...@museumpests.netmailto:ad...@museumpests.net
[mailto:ad...@museumpests.net] On Behalf Of Louis Sorkin
Sent: Friday, February 15, 2013 5:29 PM
To: pestlist@museumpests.netmailto:pestlist@museumpests.net
Subject: [pestlist] RE: spider identification
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That's a male. You can tell by the modified, enlarged palpi.
It is a member of the family Oecobiidae. Most likely, depending on where you
live, either
Oecobius navus Blackwall, 1859Cosmopolitan or
Oecobius cellariorum (Dugès, 1836) *Cosmopolitan
The species are quite common indoors, often in a distinctive kind of web near
window frames. Web consists of 2 thin, silken sheets connected by some silk
lines radiating from the sheets to act as trip lines. The spider lives between
the two sheets, residing on the lower one. Webs can be along window frames,
ceilings, walls, floors, sort of edges where structures come together. The
common name is flatmesh weavers. Has a cribellum (in front of spinnerets) and
anal tubercle with a brush of special bristles that aid in spreading the silk
from the posterior spinnerets as it encircles prey. It has a distinctive shape
to its body and leg
