# Spider identification help - WARNING - PICS! **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 11, 2017, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976 "2017-07-11T02:59:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/1 "2017-07-11T02:59:15Z")
So this [lovely lady](https://www.flickr.com/photos/155654137@N06/shares/EyGc23)\* (I assume) has moved outside our kitchen window.\*\* I’ve tried to ID her and the best I can come up with is the common house spider (Parasteatoda tepidariorum), but she doesn’t really match the pictures I’ve seen. She’s an inch plus in length (not including legs - that’s just body). Web is a classic orb web about 2-3 ft across and anchored well. Color (in case it’s not clear) is grayish-brown. No real visible markings or colors that I can see. Tallahassee, FL is my location and she’s currently sharing the deck with two quite lovely banana spiders who are interestingly sharing a interconnected community web structure. - The other thing you can see is a small beetle that is destined to be spider poop. \*\* She’s actually been there before for a day or two, then one morning the web was gone and so was she for a couple of weeks. Tonight she showed back up. It’s an inconvenient spot as she’s actually blocking an exit off the deck. We’ve put up caution tape so as to avoid walking into her. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/2 "2017-07-11T03:06:34Z")
Okay, she moved. So here’s a [better pic](https://www.flickr.com/photos/155654137@N06/shares/1951Fv) of her underside. With the flash on, now she’s showing some markings… ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/3 "2017-07-11T03:12:22Z")
Hard to tell from the photos, but some type of Orb Weaver, probably a Garden Orb Weaver. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/4 "2017-07-11T23:23:38Z")
Based on what I could find, that’s an Australian spider. Not saying you’re wrong, just that she’s a LOOOONG way from home. Final update: She was there this morning around 7:30, but now is completely gone. It’s like she was never there. Web completely gone (even the long anchor lines). She appears to be entirely nocturnal and quite mobile. ---
**Author:** ![anomalous1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e56c9b/32.png) [@anomalous1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anomalous1)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/5 "2017-07-11T23:30:11Z")
More power to you for being so relaxed about it, if that thing moved I’d probably have my house fumed. I am not fond of insects. That thing looks awfully juicy too if it gets smooshed so then there’s a gross wiggly legged mess that needs cleaning too. That being said, it definitely looks like an orb weaver due to the nice web it made. I’ve seen one very much like it by a window unit air conditioner here before (Chicago) ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/6 "2017-07-11T23:35:19Z")
I see them all the time here in northern Alabama. I’m no expert but based on my online research, I suspect it’s a [tropical orb weaver](http://bugguide.net/node/view/24094). They spin a new web every evening, and destroy (eat?) it every morning. It’s amazing how fast they move when they spin their webs. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2017, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/7 "2017-07-11T23:42:29Z")
p.s. either that or the [Eriophora edax (humpbacked orbweaver)](http://bugguide.net/node/view/300786). They’re closely related anyway. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/8 "2017-07-12T00:21:35Z")
We have several similar varieties in So Cal. Nice to have around but I hate walking into the webs at night when they are stretched across my walkway, it freaks me out. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/9 "2017-07-12T00:33:02Z")
> [@anomalous1](#): > > More power to you for being so relaxed about it, if that thing moved I’d probably have my house fumed. I am not fond of insects. That thing looks awfully juicy too if it gets smooshed so then there’s a gross wiggly legged mess that needs cleaning too. > > That being said, it definitely looks like an orb weaver due to the nice web it made. I’ve seen one very much like it by a window unit air conditioner here before (Chicago) Heh. Thanks! I’ve always been fascinated by our 8-legged companions. And I live in Florida, so I could probably write a blog about the spider interactions we have here.\* My wife, on the other hand, gets the screaming heebie-jeebies if there’s a spider **in** the house. For some weird reason all her own though, she’s okay with our outside house guests. - Right now, we have our mystery guest, the Banana Spider Commune (now with 3 residents), the (big) wolf spider that lives just outside the door to the garage, and the little jumpy spider that’s taken up residence in my truck for the past couple of days. **scr4** My spider does NOT have all that ‘fur’. She’s very smooth-skinned (at least from a couple of feet away). ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/10 "2017-07-12T00:48:48Z")
> [@Zakalwe](#): > > Okay, she moved. So here’s a [better pic](https://www.flickr.com/photos/155654137@N06/shares/1951Fv) of her underside. With the flash on, now she’s showing some markings… ::Looks at OP’s location:: I believe that’s Susie, my third cousin, twice removed. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/11 "2017-07-12T01:02:35Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > ::Looks at OP’s location:: > > I believe that’s Susie, my third cousin, twice removed. Would you please tell her she’s welcome here? We even put up tape so no one would accidentally walk into her web! But at least now she has a name! Thanks for that. She can join Beth, Betty, and Cathy (the 'Nanar spiders). ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/12 "2017-07-12T02:20:31Z")
> [@anomalous1](#): > > I am not fond of insects. Of course spiders are only fond of insects in the sense that humans are fond of [chicken](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KFC#/media/File:KFC_logo.svg). ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/13 "2017-07-12T18:35:55Z")
Permit me to suggest she might be a barn spider. See the Flicker page [here](https://www.flickr.com/search/?text=barn%20spider), and look again at the markings on the underside of your guest. Incidentally, Charlotte of _Charlotte’s Web_ fame was supposed to be a barn spider. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2017, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/14 "2017-07-12T21:08:38Z")
> [@Zakalwe](#): > > Tallahassee, FL is my location and she’s currently sharing the deck with two quite lovely banana spiders who are interestingly sharing a interconnected community web structure. If you look closely you might see the two much smaller (and red) males. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/15 "2017-07-13T02:36:06Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > If you look closely you might see the two much smaller (and red) males. We’re now up to 3 females and at least 4 males. I’m telling you, I’ve got the spider equivalent of Woodstock happening on my deck. **Sailboat** , you could be right. There are a few on that page that are closer than anything else I’ve seen. ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/16 "2017-07-13T10:52:27Z")
[http://www.spiders.us/species/filter/florida/](http://www.spiders.us/species/filter/florida/) barn funnel weaver is known to be in florida, and domesticated (happy to live on/in buildings) ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/17 "2017-07-13T12:16:26Z")
I found a spider in my trousers this morning when I went to put them on (no Groucho jokes please). I am normally pro-spider, but I stomped this one. Hiding in my clothing is a no-no. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2017, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/18 "2017-07-13T22:40:57Z")
> [@Isilder](#): > > [http://www.spiders.us/species/filter/florida/](http://www.spiders.us/species/filter/florida/) > > barn funnel weaver is known to be in florida, and domesticated (happy to live on/in buildings) Web is wrong for that. This is a classic orb. Also, per my recollection of seeing other funnel weavers, she’s HUGE for that kind of that spider. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/19 "2017-07-14T16:57:43Z")
> [@Zakalwe](#): > > Web is wrong for that. I spent an embarrassing amount of time trying to parse why you though the Internet was wrong about that spider. Heh. ---
**Author:** ![swampspruce](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampspruce/32/261_2.png) [@swampspruce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampspruce)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spider-identification-help-warning-pics/790976/20 "2017-07-14T19:05:00Z")
Based off a quick Google search I’m thinking it’s a [tropical orb weaver](http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/spiders/tropical_orb_weaver.htm)…