Spiders bite???

[taliesin238]

Do british spiders bite?? I started working in a nursing home about 10 years ago and one of the nurses had a funny veiny spot appear on her arm and she said "Oh look ive got a spider bite" At the time i thought what absolute twaddle however, all the other nurses were in agreement with her saying "Oh yeah i had one the other day its best u use this on it".

When i was a kid i used to pick up spiders all the time until one day i picked up one of those tiny body but really long legged spiders and i felt a sudden pinch on the palm of my hand. I threw it on the floor and ive never picked up a spider since!!

[hau kola]

Yes,both my partner and his Dad have been bitten.Its no worse than a sting.

[Rabelais]

Certain spiders in the UK bite, the natural history museum has nicely catalogued histories of spider bites. Most will only bite when extremely pressed e.g by crushing them.
The red woodlouse spider is an agressive chap and will bite relatively easily and I also notice the hobo spider isn't in the list which is nasty and is occasionally seen in this country. But read away and enjoy
http://www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/life/insect s-spiders/spiderbites/index.html

[heathfield]

All spiders bite - it's how they get their food. But in the UK very few are able to pierce the skin.

[burnhal]

Did you read about the False Black Widows that are establishing in the South? Have a very nasty bite.
See http://www.nhm.ac.uk/about-us/news/2007/may/ne ws_11767.html

[thugulike]

I was bitten by a british house spider when one was lurking in a shoe. Bit me on the toe and it hurt at the time but I had no ill effects and there wasn't even a mark to see.

[freshjive818]

woodlouse spiders are the worst spiders in the uk for biting, it is the only spider in britain able to puncture a woodlouse's back (given the name), only found in the south of the uk (mainland) there bite is twice as bad as a wasp sting so ive been told, they have red legs and a white abdomen with silky hairs, they hunt there prey instead of waiting on a web and rest in a silk casing, we get quite a few in cornwall and some get quite big.