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Comments & ID Thoughts
This little spider slowly dropped from the ceiling, then when I used the flash for the picture the little guy feigned death. When I tried to manipulate the area to get a better angle for another photo he quickly recovered and was gone to fast for me to get any more pics.
- Submitted by:
- Submitted: Sep 8, 2025
- Photographed: Sep 8, 2025
- Spider: Parasteatoda
- Location: Chase, Kansas, United States
- Spotted Indoors: Other
- Found in web?: No
- Attributes:
Help identify this spider
Oct 24, 2025
Sep 28, 2025
COLFAX, 
Looks like an American house spider.
Species Parasteatoda tepidariorum – Common House Spider – BugGuide.Net
Definitely Parasteatoda. There are two possible species that look the same. P. tabulata hasn’t been adequately studied for range. I think the ones in my City are mostly P. tabulata…….but I don’t have the equipment for dissection and magnified photography. I could borrow it at the University in my neighborhood…..how do you knock out a spider Dan? Maid, that’s interesting that it feigned dying due to camera flash! I’ve never seen any arthropod do that. Some spiders, like Black Lace Weavers, go unconscious when they are touched ( for several minutes). I’m always interested in observations like yours. I took… Read more »
Carbon dioxide will anesthetize a spider for a short time, 10 to 20 minutes.
They don’t death curl so good for under microscopes or macro photography.
Using CO2 to anesthetize spiders
Anesthetize BlackWidow Spider
A lot of cobweb spiders I have snatched from their webs play dead a few moments.