ForeverArsenal wrote in message
...
Hi
Wonder if someone can advise please.
Lean -to greenhouse in full flow at the moment.

Up one corner I have a sieve which I've just discovered is home
to a few hundred tiny-tiny mustard coloured spiders ,is this
the norm for babies spiders or do I have a greenhouse nasty
that needs sorting.

Many thanks.
--
Barry.
If it ain't broke-don't fix it.


Hi Barry,

The spiderlings of Araneus diadematus (aka the Garden Cross Spider) are
yellow with a black triangular marking on the rear third of its abdomen.
They generally hatch and disperse around April.

Another spider which likes high corners in outbuildings is Pholcus
phalangioides. However, I think their season is a bit later - although that
could vary in a warmish greenhouse. Their abdomen is more tubular than A.
diadematus and usually brown or grey, but I think there are regional
variations.

Another spider of human habitation is zygiella x-notata, but it isn't
mustard-coloured.

Another possibility might be Tegenaria gigantea (or its close relation), but
'mustard' would not be my description. It can be grey/brown or
golden-brown, both with a darker 'chevron' pattern.

A. diadematus and Z x-notata are both orb web weavers.
P. phalangiodes builds a large, random web in high corners.
T. gigantea (et al) build sheet webs across corners (or other structures)
with a tubular retreat.
However, they all construct balls or occasionally tethered mounds of silk
for egg sac protection, which is obviously what you've seen.

Please, please don't use chemicals and risk harming them. Let's face it,
you've got a great biological control for insect pests already. Enjoy them.

Spider