Fun Spitting Spiders Facts For Kids

The spitting spider (Scytodes thoracica) is a tropical and subtropical spider species that is found mainly in North America, Japan, Britain, Sweden, and Argentina. This species is adapted to live in all types of houses and buildings. Spitting spiders have poor eyesight but are very fast in hunting their prey with the help of their long legs.

These spiders also contribute to the disposal of pests. They help in controlling the pest population. They are venomous and can be a household pest itself.

Spitting spiders are some of the strangest hunters in the wild. Here are some of the most interesting facts about the Spitting Spider (Scytodes thoracica). Afterward, do check our other articles on darkling beetle facts and puss moth facts as well.

Spitting Spider Interesting Facts

What type of animal is a Spitting Spider?

The spitting spider (Scytodes thoracica) is a kind of spider that belongs to the Scytodidae family. Spitting spiders have a lifespan of not more than five years, and female spiders are known to die after laying eggs.

What class of animal does a Spitting Spider belong to?

The Spitting Spider belongs to the Arachnida class of animals.

How many Spitting Spiders are there in the world?

A spitting spider's habitat can be found in the United States of America. Other than that, it is also found in some European countries, Argentina, Australia, and Japan, but in small populations.

Where does a Spitting Spider live?

These spiders are regarded as tropical and subtropical spiders that are found mainly in the United States of America, Britain, Sweden, Japan, and Argentina. This species is adapted to live in warm houses and buildings.

What is a Spitting Spider's habitat?

Spitting spiders prefer to live in the wild. This species is adapted to live in warm houses and buildings. They are found in temperate forests. In buildings, they are found in dark corners, cupboards, and closets of houses and apartments.

Who do Spitting Spiders live with?

Spitting spiders are solitary creatures and live alone. They come into contact with other spitting spiders only in the mating season.

How long does a Spitting Spider live?

The average lifespan of a Spitting Spider is between two and four years. Female spitting spiders may die while carrying the eggs in the mating season. In comparison, male spitting spiders may die of hunger.

How do they reproduce?

Spitting spiders reproduce sexually. They are solitary creatures but come together in the mating season. The males and females produce pheromones. When the male spitting spider meets the female spitting spider, they fill their reproductive parts with sperm and form the sperm web.

When the males approach the female, the female spitting spider raises their reproductive organs for the mating to take place. After the mating is done, both of them separate. They may meet new partners in the next mating.

The sperms are held by the female spitting spider until the eggs are laid. Around 21-36 eggs are present in a single cocoon and around two to four cocoons are laid every year. The mother takes care of the newborns and the more they get the prey to eat, the faster they grow.

What is their conservation status?

These species are found in abundance in North America. Other than that, it is also found in some European countries, Argentina and Japan, but in small populations. So, their conservation status is of Least Concern at present.

Spitting Spider Fun Facts

What do Spitting Spiders look like?

A spitting spider has long, thin, hairless legs. On their posterior end, they have an oversized prosoma. The abdomen is circular and is smaller in size than its prosoma. Their large poison glands are present in this prosoma only. Their bodies are yellow with black marks. Male spitting spiders are comparatively larger than female spitting spiders.

How cute are they?

This particular species from order Araneae is venomous and are found to be a little scary by people who do not like spiders. Although their sting is so small that it cannot harm a human, it is still venomous since the venom glands are present.

How do they communicate?

They have very weak eyesight, so this particular species cannot communicate visually. They use chemical signals to intimate each other while preying or mating.

How big is a Spitting Spider?

The spitting spider size range is 0.12-0.24 in (3-6mm). It also has large poison glands from which this brown spider spits venom to immobilize the prey and hunt it.

How fast can Spitting Spiders move?

Spitting spiders are slow-moving spiders, but they prey on smaller animals by spitting a fluid that sticks into a venomous and sticky mass. They are very aggressive creatures.

They have poor eyesight but are very fast in hunting their prey with the help of their long legs and special hunting technique. Their liquid venomous silk can travel around 30 meters per second.

How much does a Spitting Spider weigh?

The average weight of spitting spiders is 0.0009-0.0010 oz (2-5mg).

What are the male and female names of the species?

There are no sex-specific names for spitting spiders.

What would you call a baby Spitting Spider?

Spitting spider babies are known as spiderlings.

What do they eat?

These spiders are insectivores and mostly eat a variety of insect species and arthropods, such as moths, flies, spiders, and household bugs. These nocturnal spiders also eat similar food items and, in the Philippines, are known to eat insects such as green scale, black citrus aphids, citrus mealybugs, Philippine katydids, and lime swallowtails.

In Britain, mosquitoes are often eaten by these venomous spiders. Their hunting pattern comprises several steps such as tapping their front legs, spitting, biting, wrapping, and then feeding the insect.

Are they harmful?

Spitting spiders consume prey such as flies and mosquitoes that are bothersome. The spitting spider is poisonous but a spitting spider bite is not harmful to humans because of its small size. These nocturnal creatures help in controlling the pest population. They are venomous and can be a household pest itself.

Would they make a good pet?

Keeping Spitting Spiders as pets is kind of unusual and strange. These spiders are not poisonous and cannot bite humans, but people prefer not to keep them as pets.

Why is it called a Spitting Spider?

Scytodes thoracica is called a spitting spider because this species excretes a venom-laced silk-like substance on the target. The venom in the silk-like substance paralyzes the prey and, once it is dry, the spider bites its victim and injects the venom into its body so that its tissues are liquified.

What kind of web does the Spitting Spider make?

While mating, the male Spitting Spider makes the sperm web. The sperm web is drawn around the genetic openings so that the sperm droplets can be collected in it.

Other than that, these spiders use their spitting web as a defensive measure against other spiders or threats. The silk-like venom is produced by the modified venom glands in the cephalothorax.

What to do if you find a Spitting Spider at your home?

Although these spitting spiders are used to control pest populations and help control the population of household pests too, they can be household pets too. And to avoid this, the owner should keep the house clean, clean the corners of the house and make sure there's no web on the corners of the walls.

And if the population is high, get the household pests controlled.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly animal facts for everyone to discover! Learn more about some other arthropods including Cicada Killer Wasp Facts, or Click Beetle Facts.

You can even occupy yourself at home by coloring in one of our free printable spitting spider coloring pages.