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 and crevices, in thermostats, and in
other protected places.
YELLOW HOUSE SPIDER
Look for webs inside jets and burner
Chirocanthium mildei
trains of gas appliances that are inactive
during the summer-winter transition
period. Other sites are gas stoves and
refrigerators in recreational vehicles,
gas air conditioners and through-the-
wall gas furnaces. [The silken
obstructions interfere with gas flow;
operational failure can be an indication
of their presence.]
Habitat Alterations
Close gaps around outside entry doors
and ground floor windows that may be
entry points for the spider.
Keep grass low next to building
foundations to discourage wandering
spiders.
The Yellow House spider was introduced into the
United States in the late 1940s and is now common.
Pesticide Application
A native species is common outdoors, and a third,
Where biting is a problem, apply a
introduced into Hawaii, is now common inside
residual pesticide labeled for spiders in
buildings there. These spiders are about l/4 inch long,
cracks and crevices, including closets
with legs and cephalothorax darker than the abdomen.
and furniture joints.
It has been reported as being yellow, white, or
Apply pesticides carefully, in small
greenish.
amounts and at low pressure to suppress
In late summer and early fall, Yellow House
drift and noxious odors.
spiders migrate into structures and automobiles. At this
Ventilate the rooms after treatment.
time, they have not reached the adult stage, and they
weave protective, white, silken cocoon-like webs in
which to overwinter and molt into the adult stage in
spring. The Yellow House spider will bite if pressed
THE AGGRESSIVE HOUSE SPIDER
or accidently confined (e.g. during the victim's sleep).
Tegenaria agrestis
The venom has been described as causing pain and
This common funnel-weaving spider is found in
reddening at the site of the bite. In some instances a
the northwestern United States. Its body is about l/2
deadening of the tissue will occur, but much less
inch long; it has a dull tan color with darker markings
severe than that caused by the Brown Recluse spider.
on its oval abdomen. This spider makes thick webs
Children that show symptoms of spider bites (the two
with the funnel neck back in a wall crevice and the
fang marks) may have been bitten by the Yellow
wider mouth opening into a room. They are found
House spider. This spider, however, cannot pierce the
only in moist areas of basements or cellars, in ground
skin of everyone; there is a very large margin of
level window wells, and so forth. The spider has been
safety.
given its name because it readily bites when touched or
Inspection
pressed. The bite, not initially painful, resembles the
Inspect rooms, particularly bedrooms of suspected
bite of the Brown Recluse spider (not found in the
Yellow House spider bite victims. Inspect obvious
Northwest) and other bites that result in ulcerating
webbing sites in the fall as a part of ongoing
lesions. A close relative is distributed in the
monitoring activities for other pests.
northeastern United States but is not aggressive. These
cellar-dwelling, funnel-weaving spiders were
Look at the angles of the wall and
introduced from Europe where they are very
ceiling, door and window facings,
in furniture joints, in larger cracks
commonly found in structures.
Module Two, Chapter 3, Pg 4
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