Cellar Spiders

Behavior and Habitat of Cellar Spiders

When Cellar spiders are threatened by a touch to the web or when too large of prey becomes entangled, it vibrates rapidly in a gyrating motion in its web and becomes blurred and almost invisible. For this reason it has sometimes been called a ""Vibrating Spider."" Doing so might make it difficult for a predator to see exactly where the spider is, or may increase the chances of capturing insects that have just brushed their web and are still hovering nearby. If the spider continues to be harassed, it will retreat into a corner or drop from its web. Cellar spiders are web-weaving spiders and are distributed worldwide. They hang inverted in messy, irregular, tangled webs. These webs are constructed in dark and damp recesses, in caves, under rocks and loose bark, abandoned mammal burrows, and undisturbed areas in buildings and cellars (hence the common name ""Cellar spiders"").