help me decide what to do, I have a "small spider infestation" at home

[cmaranhao]

Hello everyone,

decided to try and search for a specific forum that might help me with my doubts.

I live in Europe (Portugal) and since I have moved to my new home more or less 2 years ago, I started seeing many of these spiders. majority of them are outside but lately I am finding more and more inside my house so I am a bit worried because we have a baby and I do not know what these can do.

I know Portugal is not a dangerous country where venomous spiders are common but we have some that can be problematic, even more for a baby.

I tried to find a Portuguese forum but we are too small of a country for those so maybe you are my best bet.

Pictures below, I was able to catch 2 of these in under 5 minutes in my garage just now. yesterday I caught another one in the kitchen.

We keep our house clean so I cannot understand how can this be happening.

 

[NYAN]

Those are wolf spiders. They are harmless to humans and are good at eating pests. They live outdoors, underground and or under debris typically. If you are finding them indoors it could be that the males are maturing right now and are wandeing inside on accident because they are looking for females. Besides that it would be unusual. Are you sure that the spiders you are finding inside are not another species as well?

Anyway, if they are all wolf spiders this means that they are coming indoors from outside. They are entering your home somehow. You should keep doors closed as much as possible and attempt to seal cracks that they can enter through.

 

[cmaranhao]

Those are wolf spiders. They are harmless to humans and are good at eating pests. They live outdoors, underground and or under debris typically. If you are finding them indoors it could be that the males are maturing right now and are wandeing inside on accident because they are looking for females. Besides that it would be unusual. Are you sure that the spiders you are finding inside are not another species as well?

Anyway, if they are all wolf spiders this means that they are coming indoors from outside. They are entering your home somehow. You should keep doors closed as much as possible and attempt to seal cracks that they can enter through.

hello. thanks for your answer.

I have been searching google and yes, this seems to be a wolf spider. relieved that they are harmless but still afraid of the sting, from what I read, it can hurt as a bee sting. not good for the baby if it is stung by accident.

I have seen them outside in our garden (we have decorative rocks around our house so these can qualify as debris which is a good habitat for them). this explains the huge numbers of these I see around. in the garage I think I have figured out where they are entering. there is a pipe under the house that connects our heat pump (which is outside, near the decorative rocks) to the water reservoir (inside the garage). it is a tight fit this pipe but for a spider it is a highway. will try and fix this, close it permanently. this water reservoir is inside the garage, very close to where I caught both of them.

regarding your last question, of course I have seen other types of spiders inside our house but nothing that got my attention as this "infestation". other spiders are normal in quantity and size, these ones are very big for my standards and also unpleasantly common.

but I think it is figured out now, I need to close that pipe and hopefully this improves. also, today the garage was fully open all day and was scorching hot outside, they came in for fresh for sure.

how can I recognise a male from a female? I thought the one on the pictures was a female but just from my "common sense". I know nothing about spiders.

 

[Andrew Clayton]

hello. thanks for your answer.

I have been searching google and yes, this seems to be a wolf spider. relieved that they are harmless but still afraid of the sting, from what I read, it can hurt as a bee sting. not good for the baby if it is stung by accident.

I have seen them outside in our garden (we have decorative rocks around our house so these can qualify as debris which is a good habitat for them). this explains the huge numbers of these I see around. in the garage I think I have figured out where they are entering. there is a pipe under the house that connects our heat pump (which is outside, near the decorative rocks) to the water reservoir (inside the garage). it is a tight fit this pipe but for a spider it is a highway. will try and fix this, close it permanently. this water reservoir is inside the garage, very close to where I caught both of them.

regarding your last question, of course I have seen other types of spiders inside our house but nothing that got my attention as this "infestation". other spiders are normal in quantity and size, these ones are very big for my standards and also unpleasantly common.

but I think it is figured out now, I need to close that pipe and hopefully this improves. also, today the garage was fully open all day and was scorching hot outside, they came in for fresh for sure.

how can I recognise a male from a female? I thought the one on the pictures was a female but just from my "common sense". I know nothing about spiders.

spiders dont sting they have fangs so they bite, they are not trying to set up home in you're decorative rocks indoors lol. Finding a spider a day is not an infestation chances are that its males you are finding that are out wandering looking for a female and lastly nobody has "common sense" on how to sex a spider and if you know nothing about spiders how can you're common sense tell you this? some specific species are sexually dimorphic meaning they are visually different but most look the same and can only be determined via moult or maturity.

 

[NYAN]

I have been searching google and yes, this seems to be a wolf spider. relieved that they are harmless but still afraid of the sting, from what I read, it can hurt as a bee sting. not good for the baby if it is stung by accident.

I can see where you are coming from here. However, this isn’t a very likely scenario. The spider would need to feel threatened in order to bite, which would require it being grabbed or pressed against the skin in most cases. Keep in mind that venom is a precious resource for them. They would much rather use it on food than people.

regarding your last question, of course I have seen other types of spiders inside our house but nothing that got my attention as this "infestation". other spiders are normal in quantity and size, these ones are very big for my standards and also unpleasantly common.

This variant of spider can’t exactly ‘infest’ an area. This increase in sightings may just be seasonal and perfectly normal. Some species can have very large population densities indoors, however. These will eat each other if the population gets too high.

but I think it is figured out now, I need to close that pipe and hopefully this improves. also, today the garage was fully open all day and was scorching hot outside, they came in for fresh for sure.

The spiders are perfectly adapted to live outdoors. They don’t really come in to seek shelter from the elements. They more likely simply wander in on accident.

how can I recognise a male from a female? I thought the one on the pictures was a female but just from my "common sense". I know nothing about spiders.

Males will be more leggy than females. They will also have large ‘punching bag’ like appendages that are attached to the small leg like structures in the spider’s front.

 

[Andrew Clayton]

Males will be more leggy than females. They will also have large ‘punching bag’ like appendages that are attached to the small leg like structures in the spider’s front.

this being if they are mature.

 

[NYAN]

this being if they are mature.

Not really. Males will exhibit bulging of the palps prior to maturity. That’s besides the point because we are talking about mature males here.

 

[Andrew Clayton]

Not really. Males will exhibit bulging of the palps prior to maturity. That’s besides the point because we are talking about mature males here.

no we are not the op clearly stated he thought is was female due to common sense all I'm saying is there is no common sense for telling them apart then you started talking about mature males

 

[NYAN]

no we are not the op clearly stated he thought is was female due to common sense all I'm saying is there is no common sense for telling them apart then you started talking about mature males

He asked how to tell them apart, presumably in the context of the ones he is finding inside which would be mature males most likely, as you even mentioned. That is how I responded to his question. This debate over the wording is irrelevant to the discussion here.

nobody has "common sense" on how to sex a spider and if you know nothing about spiders how can you're common sense tell you this?

This response seems a tad condescending. I’m not a fan of patronizing people who come here over semantics. Perhaps his use of that term comes from how other animals’ females are larger than males. Who knows or cares.

He is possibly correct anyway, it appears to be a female.

 

[Smokehound714]

personally i'd just let them in. i do that myself with about 13 spider species in my home, and i havent seen a roach in here for like 15 years since. i never see them, they only wander at night, and even then they learn to avoid where people regularly walk.

the hatred of spiders was a learned behavior inflicted on america by companies that needed a way to get rid of dangerous chemicals while profiting. in other countries like brazil or cambodia the locals would make fun of people for fearinf spiders; they both eat invertebrates including tarantulas. little kids in the amazon hunt giant theraphosa blondii for breakfast.

this fear is cultivated by cartoony advertisements of sinister looking bugs exploding harmlessly in a poof of smoke.

 

[The Snark]

@cmaranhao Before you undertake removing these spiders from your home, if you wish to be properly cautious, remove your bath tub and shower, any staircases in your home and your stove. For every spider bite, from trivial through deadly, there are around 50,000 home injuries in the bathroom, on stairs, and in the kitchen. Also be certain your hot water heater is set at or below 105F or 40C. Removing all sharp objects from your house, and replacing all glass with plastic containers should also be considered.
Alternately, just consider getting on with your life and realizing wolf spiders are just a small, somewhat comical part of it. Fun to observe, and close to impossible to get to bite you.

little kids in the amazon hunt giant theraphosa blondii for breakfast.

The Amazon? Outside the cities in almost every third world country on earth...
I still growl and snarl every time my partner invites her family over for a bugs and spiders special treat dinner. I've drawn the line at if they are going to roast them in a fire, they do it outside. Not that deep fat fried smells much better.

 

[cmaranhao]

Well, already spoke to my wife about all these advice and knowledge you have given me and I have decided these 2 I caught yesterday will be set free outside. No point in killing them.

I now understand these and that they are not dangerous.

Will shut the pipe and move on.

Many thanks for all replies.

(about female or male debate and my common sense, I grew up listening to elders calling them female when they are unusually big for the common size around here, that is why I called it a female. Because if this is a male, I do not think I am still prepared to face a female due to its size. I am not too confortable around them and understand this in a spider forum might not be the norm but what made me make this topic was exactly that, not being confortable).

Regards to all.

 

[ThatsUnpossible]

Well, already spoke to my wife about all these advice and knowledge you have given me and I have decided these 2 I caught yesterday will be set free outside. No point in killing them.

I now understand these and that they are not dangerous.

Will shut the pipe and move on.

Many thanks for all replies.

(about female or male debate and my common sense, I grew up listening to elders calling them female when they are unusually big for the common size around here, that is why I called it a female. Because if this is a male, I do not think I am still prepared to face a female due to its size. I am not too confortable around them and understand this in a spider forum might not be the norm but what made me make this topic was exactly that, not being confortable).

Regards to all.

It’s not unusual for people to be wary or fearful of spiders, especially when they suddenly appear in your home and you don’t know anything about them. You did the intelligent thing, in my opinion, by asking here where folk are knowledgeable about them.

Most people would have just trod on them or sprayed a can of bug killer on them. Good for you. And don’t mind the odd sarcastic response, most people on here are very helpful.

 

[Andrew Clayton]

This response seems a tad condescending. I’m not a fan of patronizing people who come here over semantics. Perhaps his use of that term comes from how other animals’ females are larger than males. Who knows or cares.

I dont care if you think its condescending it wasnt meant for you so why you replying to it seems you're just looking for an argument here, chill out. most other common pets that people associate common sense with the males are larger like most dogs cats and humans so there is nothing common about this sorry if that sounds condescending to you too not my fault you bring you're feelings into a discussion

 

[ShyDragoness]

yall can make use of that ignore button you know?

 

[cmaranhao]

I wanted to know more about it before making any drastic decisions like the spray thing. I do not like that and avoid those type of products entirely.

 

[Andrew Clayton]

I wanted to know more about it before making any drastic decisions like the spray thing. I do not like that and avoid those type of products entirely.

you're best bet is just trying to keep doors shut and sealing up any cracks and holes on the outside of the building. Any more found inside just do the same and release them back outside

 

[cmaranhao]

yes, will do that!

 

[The Snark]

But the real, legitimate reason you don't want lycos running about the house is they can easily get hurt. It's not as bad with Huntsman that can take to the walls but lyco be earth bound under foot.

@cmaranhao I've rolled ambulance on and off for around a half century. Number of calls for bathroom, kitchen and stair accidents, dozens upon dozens. Number of calls for bees and wasps stings, a few, dog bites, quite a few more. Bat bites, 2, lawn mower bites, around 10-15, kitten vs testicles, 1, spider bites, zero. So if your concern of a spider bite is realistic, you should be living in abject terror of going into the kitchen, bathroom or negotiating stairs.