Pronunciation
Téh-juh-NARR-ee-uh doo-ELL-ick-uh
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Tegenaria gigantea (Chamberlin and Ivie)
Size
All measurements are for only the body, and do not include the legs.
Females: approximately 16-18 mm.
Males: smaller, approximately 10-12 mm.
Identification
No banding on the legs, but proportionally longer legs than its cousins T. agrestis or T. domestica
Range
Tegenaria duellica is mostly restricted to the Georgia Lowlands / Puget Trough area west of the Coastal (BC) and Cascade (US) mountain ranges from south coastal BC to mid-coastal Oregon. Isolated outlier populations are found in towns across southern BC and in Edmonton (Leech & Steiner 1992) and Lethbridge AB (Dan Johnson and Robb Bennett pers. obs.) and in Saskatoon SK (Buckle & Randell 1995). Although at least on the BC south coast T. duellica may be very common around beaches and other open, natural areas, populations in the BC interior are apparently always isolated. (Taken from:
Internet Link #2, See Internet Reference section below.)
Habitat
In comparing the ranges of the T. duellica and T. agrestis, T. duellica is more common in coastal locations and T. agrestis dominating the interior. Anecdotal evidence suggests that, where the two species are sympatric, T. duellica “out-competes” T. agrestis although the nature of their relationship is unclear. (
Internet Link #2, See Internet Reference section below.)
When found "in nature", it is typically found near water, residing under drift wood, loose bark, rocks, and in the woods.
When found around human structures, it is often located in darker areas, such as flower beds, wood piles, and areas where it can weave a funnel-web. When it is found in homes, it often is found in the darker recesses of the basement, such as corners. It is a nocturnal spider, so generally it is discovered when the lights are turned on and the spider darts for cover (and/or its web).
Food
Insects, possibly other spiders
Remarks
This spider (like its cousins
T. domestica and
T. agrestis) was imported from Europe into the ports of the Pacific Northwest, most likely in the 1930s.
The greater European house spider (T. duellica) is not dangerous to people.
The Hobo Spider (
T. agrestis) is often confused with this spider. If you are unsure of the exact species, just be mindful of this confusion, and use caution when dealing with the spider. (See
T. agrestis for more information about the hobo spider).
The presence of giant house spiders is a deterrent to the establishment of hobo spiders indoors. It out-competes and displaces the hobo spider indoors and male giant house spiders often kill male hobo spiders (without necessarily eating them)!
Internet References
1)
zoo.org: A good fact sheet about the Giant House Spider (Greater European House Spider)
2)
Newsletter of the Entomological Society of British Columbia, Volume 22, Number 1 July 2002 (an article by Robb Bennett:
Hyperbole and Hysteria on the Path to Enlightenment – a Review of Current Tegenaria Projects of Relevance to Canadian Arachnologists)
