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MEASURE SPIDER WEBS
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Cardinal spider
Know more?
Legs of adult males can reach 7 cm. This makes the Cardinal spider the species with the largest “leg span” of all Belgian spiders!
Cardinal spider (Tegenaria parietina)
Web: Typical funnel web with a funnel-shaped retreat, often more “layered” than the web of the Cardinal spider and Barn funnel weaver.
Habitat: In and around buildings, sometimes in drier, less sheltered and sunny locations. Almost always close to buildings.
How to recognize:
- typical light drawing on top of the abdomen (two light oval spots stand out) and a dark coloured drawing on cephalothorax (with three dark spots on the sides)
- legs darkly annulated (less obvious in older spiders and often almost completely lost in adult males.
Looks similar to:
- Charcoal spider (Tegenaria ferruginea). This species has a more delineated drawing (also on the legs), is much smaller and has proportionally shorter legs. The Charcoal spider is more often found in forests and less in houses.
Size
♀: 11-20mm
♂: 10-17mm
When?
♀: throughout the year
♂: August till October
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Dorsal view of male, showing the long legs ©ARABEL image library
Dorsal view of male, showing the long legs ©ARABEL image library
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Male ©Michel Vuijlsteke
Male ©Michel Vuijlsteke
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Female with light oval spots ©Pierre Oger
Female with light oval spots ©Pierre Oger
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Female with Tipulid as prey ©Richard Louvigny
Female with Tipulid as prey ©Richard Louvigny
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Female in web with shed skin ©Richard Louvigny
Female in web with shed skin ©Richard Louvigny
View the embedded image gallery online at:
https://www.spinnenspotter.be/en/grp/K0025/33524#sigProId6e7961b9cb
https://www.spinnenspotter.be/en/grp/K0025/33524#sigProId6e7961b9cb
Download
Get the free Citizen Science App on Google Play for Android or in the Apple App Store.
Register
After the start of the app you can register your own user account with just your eMail adress.
Start observing
Start observing! You are automatically logged-in after registering to add your first observation.
Download the App on your smartphone now or open the map in your browser:
Download the SpiderSpotter Card!
Do you want to help measuring spiders for science? Download the SpiderSpotter Card for self printing at home and hold it in the pictures you take in the SpiderSpotter App. With the measurement reference, we can determine the size of your spider or web observation better. You can also order it at spiderspotter@UGent.be, provide your address and the number of cards you need and we will send them to you!
When holding the SpiderSpotter Card near the spider or a spider's web, please make sure that a ruler and one of the brigthness gradient strips is visible in the picture. You can read more about how to take the pics in our info section!
Download PDF
Help to measure the Spiders!
With the new SpiderSpotter Data Analysis Tool, you can actively participate in generating scientific data! The online interface fetches spider observations live from the Citizen Science App and offers a range of tools to measure the size and the average colour of the spiders. Simply access the Data Analysis Tool and log in with your App account!
You can even select an option to just work with your observations from the App and export your measured data if you want to do your own analysis.
