Is the wasp spider venomous?
Are They Dangerous? Although they are not aggressive and are solitary wasps, spider wasps will sting when they feel threatened. For most people, a sting causes mild pain and swelling. Allergic individuals can have a more extreme reaction.
What they eat
Their main prey is grasshoppers and crickets, but also beetles and large flies. They weave their webs in tall vegetation.
The wasp spider is a great mimic – looking just like a common wasp keeps it safe from predators, even though it is not dangerous itself. It can be found in southern England, but is spreading north.
Statistics
Body length: 0.5-1.8cm
The wasp spider is a very large, colourful spider that is a recent arrival in the UK from the continent and has slowly spread over the south of England. It builds large orb webs in grassland and heathland, and attaches its silk egg-sacs to the grasses. The web has a wide, white zig-zag strip running down the middle, known as a ‘stabilimentum’, the function of which is unclear.
Mating is a dangerous game for males; they wait at the edge of the web until the female has moulted into a mature form, then take advantage of her jaws being soft and rush in to mate. However, many males still get eaten during this time.
Did you know?
Spiders use venom to immobilise and kill their prey. Unfortunately for humans, that venom is sometimes dangerous for us too: the black widow, redback, brown recluse and Brazilian wandering spiders are all notorious for biting humans and causing injury or death. However, most spiders are not aggressive and prefer to avoid large prey, or only bite in self-defence.
There are no deadly spiders living in the UK (although some do turn up in shipments of fruit from time to time), and our most venomous species is the false widow – a new arrival in the south, probably as a result of climate change. This species can cause a painful bite and flu-like symptoms.
How people can help
The Wildlife Trusts record and monitor our local wildlife to understand the effects of various factors on their populations, such as the introduction of new species.
You can help with this vital monitoring work by becoming a volunteer – you’ll not only help local wildlife, but learn new skills and make new friends along the way.
Wasp spider facts
Did you know that:
- The species was first recorded in England in the 1920s at Rye in East Sussex.
- Wasp spiders are found mainly in the south of England but are spreading northwards as far as Shropshire and Derbyshire, Surrey and Hertfordshire.
- Habitats include towns and gardens, heathland and moorland, coastal and woodland environments.
- The female wasp spider makes one of the largest egg sacs of any spiders in the UK – about 25mm across – and this will be visible in vegetation near the web supported by a tangle of silk threads.
- The wasp spider web may be a way of dumping excess silk but its exact purpose is still yet to be explained.
Wasp spider
The wasp spider, as its name suggests mimics a common wasp. The female is large, measuring 14-17mm, and has yellow, black and white stripes across its body and legs. She also has silver hairs covering her cephalothorax (the fused head and thorax). The male, in comparison is much smaller measuring only 4-6mm and is pale brown. The third set of legs of both the male and female are much smaller and shorter than the other legs. Although these distinctive and colourful spiders look like wasps, they are in fact completely harmless and cannot sting.
Their webs are orb-shaped like a common garden spider, but they have single zig-zag pattern of silk through the centre (called a ‘stabilimentum’). It is thought to reflect UV light and attract pollinating insects such as flies, bees and moths.
The wasp spider is thought to have originated in the Mediterranean, but colonised and spread, and has now become locally common along the south coast of England. They have moved northwards in recent years and can now be found in south and mid Wales, and as far north as Shropshire and Derbyshire.
