What is a woodlouse spider and are they venomous?

May 18, 2024

JUST like any other creature, spiders range over a wide spectrum of species which are split into families.

The Dysderidae family have a wide range of spiders in it such as the woodlouse, and this is what you need to know about it.

What is a woodlouse spider?

The woodlouse spider has an orange to dark red colour and consists of six eyes.

Female ones can grow to 11-15mm while the male's body length is about 9-10mm.

They are normally found in North and South America, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand although it was found in the Mediterranean area.

Their habitats would be logs, rocks, bricks, plant pots and leaf litter in warm places.

Somewhere were they can find woodlice, so typically close to wood as much as possible.

They do not create webs and they prefer to hunt prey at night and search for warm places to shelter in.

Their preferred prey is woodlice, but that doesn't mean that they do not hunt down other insects such as crickets and beetles.

On occasion, it kills other spiders and centipedes too because of its dominant nature.

The venom in woodlouse spiders is not fatal to humans.

The venom just kills the spiders' prey such as woodlice and spiders.

Woodlouse spiders are not known to cause harm to humans.

The venom kills woodlice and other spiders but it does not kill humans.

They do cause a painful bite however, and if bitten you may feel some irritation or itching.

If you feel more symptoms than that, such as loss of consciousness, it is best to seek medical attention immediately.

Woodlouse spiders have been to bite humans if they are being handled.

On The Sun, we wrote some other explainers about spiders, and how to prepare your home ahead of spider season.