As temperatures drop through October, NestBusters is seeing a rise in call-outs for a spider that gets more attention — and more unfounded alarm — than almost any other UK pest: the noble false widow. Residents in Lowdham, Burton Joyce and Calverton, and over in Hucknall and Ravenshead, are reporting sightings in sheds, garages, log stores and conservatories as the weather turns. Here’s what’s actually going on, and what to do about it.
Why these areas, and why now
Lowdham, Burton Joyce and Calverton sit on the edge of the Trent Valley and Sherwood Forest, with a lot of older stone and brick cottages, detached outbuildings, log stores and garden sheds — exactly the sheltered, undisturbed spaces false widows favour for building their messy, tangled webs. Calverton’s former mining-village housing stock adds plenty of garages and outhouses to that mix.
Hucknall and Ravenshead share the same Sherwood Forest fringe, with semi-detached ex-colliery housing that typically comes with a garage, a conservatory, or both. Autumn is peak mating season for false widows: males leave their webs to go looking for females, which is when they turn up somewhere they’re noticed — behind a car in the garage, under a conservatory window ledge, or when a log basket is brought in from the store for the first fire of the season.
What you’re actually looking for
The noble false widow (Steatoda nobilis) is a glossy, dark brown-to-black spider with a cream marking on its abdomen often described as looking a bit like a skull — roughly the size of a 50p piece including legs. It’s frequently mistaken for the much larger, non-native black widow (which isn’t established in the UK at all), and just as often confused with the common house spider, which is leggier, lighter in colour and far more frequently seen indoors. False widows build irregular, scaffold-style webs close to the ground in sheds, behind guttering, around window frames and in log piles — they don’t wander indoors the way house spiders do unless disturbed or displaced.
Should you be worried?
False widows are not aggressive and won’t bite unless trapped against skin or squeezed — most bites happen when someone picks up a log, a shoe or a glove without checking it first. For most people a bite is similar to a wasp sting: localised pain, swelling and redness that settles within a day or two. A small number of people have a stronger reaction and should seek medical advice if swelling spreads, if there are signs of infection, or if they feel unwell. The sensible approach is prevention, not panic.
What not to do
We’d steer clear of blasting aerosol spray into sheds, garages or log stores without proper ventilation and PPE — in a confined space that’s more of a risk to the person holding the can than to the spider. We’d also avoid clearing a log pile or stacked timber bare-handed; gloves and a visual check first go a long way.
How we deal with it
A false widow treatment is mostly about the places they nest rather than the odd spider you can see. Our visits typically include:
- A survey of sheds, garages, log stores, conservatories, external meter boxes and soffit/guttering areas where webs tend to form
- Removal of webs and egg sacs — a single sac can hold 50-60 spiderlings, so this step matters more than treating adults
- Targeted residual treatment of entry points and nesting sites, using products safe for use around pets once dry
- Practical advice on log storage, decluttering outbuildings and sealing gaps that give spiders (and the insects they feed on) easy access
Most domestic spider treatments are completed in a single visit, with a follow-up available if activity continues.
Book a visit
If you’ve spotted false widows — or just want sheds, garages or log stores checked before the weather turns properly cold — NestBusters covers Lowdham, Burton Joyce, Calverton, Hucknall, Ravenshead and the rest of Nottinghamshire. Call us on 0742 984 9483 or get in touch through nottinghampest.co.uk to book a survey.
