Giant spiders ‘the size of your hand’ set to invade Greater Manchester homes

If you thought 2020 had thrown everything at you already, think again, as it turns out Greater Manchester is set to be invaded by a load of massive spiders.

That’s right, it’s officially big spider season, and as such you might start to see more creepy crawlies – some with a leg span of 10cm – around your house in September.

Thousands of giant spiders, some ‘as big as your hand’, will be making themselves at home in houses across the country, as they try to find somewhere warm to live.

The reason behind this invasion is because August and September is their mating season, and males are on the hunt for females to mate with – and a nice warm, dry spot to get it on in.

Orangeaurochs / Flickr

According to leading ecologist Dr Chris Terrell-Nield of Nottingham Trent University, while house spiders are not dangerous they ‘can give you a nip’.

Dr Terrell-Nield told Nottinghamshire Live: “The spider that is coming into houses at the moment is the house spider and it is one of Britain’s biggest spiders.

“The males are up to 10cm across the leg span and can be the size of your hand – that is the top range but it can be two thirds of that size. The size is down to how much they have eaten.

“They are not dangerous but they can give you a nip. They have biting fangs. These things have been breeding and started their life span in the spring.

“This time of the year, August and September, the male spiders have the urge to mate and start wandering and looking for females.

“When they find them they mate and she lays eggs and the male usually dies.”

David Short / Flickr

He went on to add that you shouldn’t be scared of the spiders, and that they ‘do an incredible service for us’ by eating a lot of flies.

He added: “But we are far more dangerous to them than they are to us. They come inside because it is warm and dry in houses so it is attractive to them.”

If you are scared of spiders, don’t worry, as the mating season comes to an end at the start of October – the best way to keep spiders at bay is to close your windows and doors, and use essential oils like lavender and peppermint.