Money spiders belong to the second largest family of spiders, the Linyphiidae, which consists of approximately 4706 species worldwide. With over 280 different species of money spider, they are one of the most common spiders found in the UK.
Also known as sheet weavers in many parts of the world, these tiny little creatures are known to build large webs for catching prey which resembles silk sheets, hence their name.
Also, for the superstitious among us, money spiders are thought to bring new wealth, hence their other more common name.
How To Identify a Money Spider
Money spiders are a relatively small species and typically between 2-2.5 mm long. In general appearance, it looks much like other members of its family (Linyphiidae).
Male spiders are exceptionally black in colour with a red abdomen, and their mouthparts are dark brown or black. The females are typically the same, but they tend to have slightly paler abdomens with a light brown pattern in them.
Its spiderlings are typically grey with white stripes running through their bodies, although these can become more grey as they mature.
It’s usually very hard to identify exactly which species and sex you’re looking at with the naked eye due to their tiny size. Better clarification can be obtained with a microscope or a hand glass.
Where Can You Find Many Spiders?
The money spider is abundant worldwide and is one of the most common when it comes to UK spiders.
It prefers habitats with dense shrubs, dwarf conifers, bushes, and low-lying vegetation that are full of life. Their webs are typically covered by plants or other plant debris. Additionally, it prefers areas with high humidity due to its inability to survive in an arid environment.
What Do Money Spiders Eat?
Money spiders feed on flying insects caught in their webs, including various bug species such as beetles, springtails, flies and other spiders.
Money spiders are not venomous and pose very little threat to us. Although they have been known to bite when accidentally threatened, their bites cause no more than a small patch of itchy irritation, which passes rather quickly.
Why Do They Call It a Money Spider?
Superstition would have it that if a money spider is found crawling on you or in your hair, it’s likely here to spin you new clothes, hence the association with new money.
Although there is no proof that these spiders bring financial good fortune, they can indicate good luck to many, especially if they land on you. This often happens due to a process called ballooning. Money spiders can often travel up to 100 miles through the air, almost flying, due to rising air currents. The spider lets out a strand of silk, and is carried away with the wind, often landing on people as the air cools. So, if a money spider lands on you, for many, it’s considered to bring good luck.
Sam loves to learn about animals and their habitats. He has been a nature lover from a very young age, and has been writing papers and articles about wildlife for as long as he can remember.
Habitat: Money spiders occupy a range of habitats from cracks in soil and tiny depressions in bare ground through low-growing vegetation (including many crops) to higher structures such as the branches of shrubs and trees.
We know that spiders live in every kind of environment there is on earth. They live in the desert; they live in cold weather. They live in the jungle, and they can live underwater. One of the reasons that spiders can live in many different places on earth is because they have adapted to their environments.
This should be reassuring for arachnophobes since most Money Spiders are less than 3mm long. In most cases they have grey or black bodies, although some do have distinctive markings. Identifying individual species usually requires close examination with a microscope, but a few can be identified with a hand lens.
While spiders feast primarily on insects, some large spiders have been known to eat worms, snails, and even small vertebrates like frogs, lizards, birds, and bats.
In order to prevent people from killing innocent spiders, small spiders are called 'money spiders' and are believed to bring money and good luck. If one sees a spider where it could get killed, the spider should be moved to a window.
These are harmless little spiders that might help keep the population of small insects under control, but don't have any strong direct effects on humans.
They belong to the subfamily Erigoninae, the dwarf spiders, whose members average about 2mm in length—so small that it can be easier to identify them by their webs.
While they are also eaten in other parts of the world – including neighboring Thailand, parts of India, Papua New Guinea and Venezuela – their popularity in Cambodia is unprecedented. And like many insects, they are rich in protein, folic acid and zinc!
How Long Can They Live Without Food? The amount of time that spiders can live without food varies between different species. Larger species tend to live longer without food than smaller species, but in general, they can go anywhere from 30-60 days without food.
To grow they have to shed their exoskeleton, which they do many times during their lives. Unlike insects, some spider species keep growing after they become adults, and continue to molt as they get bigger.
Spiders are not attracted to heat and can live quite comfortably in a wide temperature range. Most spiders prefer temperatures hovering around 70 degrees.
Grab a magnifying glass, and check out the top right corner of your dollar bill. Just to the left of the top of the “1,” there is what some believe appears to be either a tiny spider or owl in the “webbing” pattern.
Several of these are very common in Britain. They use a method of dispersal called 'ballooning'.The spider lets out a strand of silk into the air, wind currents lift the spider into the air, and it 'flies'.
Spiders are considered lucky by many and little money spiders in particular. If you find one on you it is said you will come into money. Finding a penny is also considered lucky, 'Find a penny, pick it up, all that day you will have good luck'.
The Theridion grallator spider, commonly called the Hawaiian happy face spider, is found only in Hawaii in rainforests on the islands of O'ahu, Moloka'i, Maui, and Hawai'i.
The giant house spider can be found in dark corners of rooms, storage sheds, barns, bridges, fences, and other structures. This large spider generally constructs funnel webs on window angles and in corners.
Introduction: My name is Saturnina Altenwerth DVM, I am a witty, perfect, combative, beautiful, determined, fancy, determined person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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