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Insect, Spider and Kin Guide

This guide initially displays common arthropods (insects, arachnids, centipedes/millipedes and crustaceans) of all shapes. Use the selectors below to include rare species, select by shape, or search by name.

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Showing 1 of 114 insects, spiders and kin.
Crevice Weaver

Photo: Ken Schneider

Crevice Weaver

Photo: pgjr75

Crevice Weaver

(Filistatidae family)

Order: Araneae (Spiders)
Size: 0.4 - 1 in (9 - 25 mm)
Distinguishing Features: females are black, gray or dark brown with black or dark brown velvety-looking legs; males are light brown and mostly glossy with light brown long legs; males are thinner and smaller than females; both sexes have eight eyes clustered together on a central mound

Status: native; common
Habitat: cracks and crevices of the exterior of buildings; under stones, loose bark, under logs

Female Crevice Weavers (top photo) are rarely seen. They build webs around cracks and seldom move except to capture insect and other arthropod prey. The webbing produced by these spiders is not sticky. Rather they use their legs to comb the webbing and create a fine, velcro-like netting that catches the insects legs. In contrast to females, males (bottom photo) typically wander in search of prey and females to mate with. They do not have a set territory but may stray indoors at times. Male Crevice Weavers can be mistaken for the Brown Recluse (see discussion). However, the Crevice Spider has thick black spines on its legs rather than short wispy hairs, is larger and has no violin shape on its back. A female spider can live for up to eight years and produce several hundred eggs at a time. She will guard an egg sac inside her funnel-like retreat until they have hatched and dispersed.

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