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spider Invisible Spiders

Identify It >   Spiders Section >   Invisible Spiders >





Scientific name:  Drapetisca socialis

Size:  Head and body up to 4mm long

Distribution:  Found throughout the UK

Months seen:  June to October

Habitat:  Woodlands

Food:  Flies and other small insects

Special features:  Invisible spiders get their name from their ability to hide themselves so well.  When you find them they're usually on the bark of trees, but they're not always visible until they move.

The colour of Invisible Spiders can vary.  On darker trees the abdomen pattern can be darker to match.  On the front of the abdomen there is a line of white dots.  The light brown coloured legs have dark rings along their length.

Invisible spiders sometimes make very fine webs on tree bark to trap their prey, but they also hunt by running over the bark and amongst leaf litter.

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