Lurking Labyrinth Spider!
At the moment we seem to have so many Labyrinth Spider (Agelena labyrinthica) webs in the trees and vegetation along the river!
Labyrinth Spiders are found in Wales and England, especially in the southern counties. They are usually seen between June and October, and can be found in long, rough grass, hedgerows and low down on trees.
The abdomen of the labyrinth spider features a central pale brown stripe with a darker, more greyish band on either side. The darker bands have tiny white dashes or chevron markings running through them.
Labyrinth spiders produce a sheet web. It's so thick in places that it appears white in colour. The web can be at ground level or up to 1.5 metres from the ground. The majority are found around 60cm from the ground. They are nearly always built along a south facing hedgerow, verge or grassy bank.
At one end of the web there is a funnel shaped retreat, which can cause alarm because it is sometimes confused with other more dangerous funnel web spiders. Further down the funnel is a labyrinth of tunnels which gives this spider its name. Hidden in the centre is the egg sac containing all the developing young.
The females remain with the young until they are ready to leave the web. Sometimes they die before the spiderlings go, and in this case the young will eat their mother!
Lurking Labyrinth Spider!
At the moment we seem to have so many Labyrinth Spider (Agelena labyrinthica) webs in the trees and vegetation along the river!
Labyrinth Spiders are found in Wales and England, especially in the southern counties. They are usually seen between June and October, and can be found in long, rough grass, hedgerows and low down on trees.
The abdomen of the labyrinth spider features a central pale brown stripe with a darker, more greyish band on either side. The darker bands have tiny white dashes or chevron markings running through them.
Labyrinth spiders produce a sheet web. It's so thick in places that it appears white in colour. The web can be at ground level or up to 1.5 metres from the ground. The majority are found around 60cm from the ground. They are nearly always built along a south facing hedgerow, verge or grassy bank.
At one end of the web there is a funnel shaped retreat, which can cause alarm because it is sometimes confused with other more dangerous funnel web spiders. Further down the funnel is a labyrinth of tunnels which gives this spider its name. Hidden in the centre is the egg sac containing all the developing young.
The females remain with the young until they are ready to leave the web. Sometimes they die before the spiderlings go, and in this case the young will eat their mother!