While not everyone likes spiders, the British Arachnological Society has got three spider surveys for you to get involved with – and you don’t need any prior knowledge of how to identify spiders to take part!
Lockdown spider survey 1 – Cellar Spiders
There are only three Cellar Spider species in the UK, of which two are mostly found in homes (and not just in cellars!), making them ideal for a national survey. They are relatively easy to tell apart and often easy to find. More information and an identification guide are provided.
Lockdown spider survey 2 – Garden Spiderlings
The spiderlings of the garden spider (Araneus diadematus) emerge in spring, and stay clustered together in a silk scaffold. The results of this survey will improve the understanding of the timing and distribution of these exploding balls of spiderlings. More information about the survey and an identification guide are provided.
Lockdown spider survey 3 – Nurseryweb Spider eggs sacs and nurseries
Nurseryweb spiders (Pisaura mirabilis) are commonly seen in spring and summer, sometimes with large, spherical egg sacs or guarding nursery webs containing a dense balls of spiderlings. The results of this survey will improve knowledge about the distribution of these spiders and how they vary in the timing of egg sac and nursery web production. More information about the survey is provided.