Bug FAQCommon Rain Spider
Palystes superciliosus · Order: Araneae · Family: Sparassidae
Source: Wikipedia
Common rain spiders are large huntsman spiders with bodies up to 4 cm long and leg spans near 11 cm. They often wander into houses before rain, where they may bite people, producing a mild sting-like reaction. Females lay up to three silk egg sacs each two-year life, and males are most visible from August to December.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
When threatened they show yellow-black bands on the underside of their legs, giving a fearsome look. Males and females are about the same size.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Body length ranges from 15 to 36 mm and leg span can reach up to 110 mm. Legs may grow to 11 cm while the body can be as long as 4 cm.
Source: Wikipedia
Is it a pest in the house?
They are a very common species and are frequently found inside houses. They usually come indoors just before rainy periods.
Source: Wikipedia
Does it bite or sting?
Gardeners are sometimes bitten by protective mothers guarding their egg sacs.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They prefer scrubland and savannah woodland habitats.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
They often enter homes before rain to hunt geckos.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
After early-summer mating, the female builds a round silk egg sac about 60 to 100 mm that includes twigs and leaves. A female makes roughly three such egg sacs during her two-year lifespan.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Males are commonly seen from August through December, likely searching for females. Egg sacs are typically observed from November to April.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
The species is native to Southern Africa. In South Africa it occurs from KwaZulu-Natal eastward to Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Gauteng, North West, Eastern Cape and Western Cape.
Source: Wikipedia
More photos
Questions people ask
Do they bite people?
Yes, their bite feels like a mild bee sting with burning and swelling that lasts a few days.
Source: Wikipedia
When are they most likely to be seen in homes?
They usually enter houses just before rain and males are most active from August to December.
Source: Wikipedia
Where are common rain spiders native to?
They are native to Southern Africa, especially many provinces across South Africa.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Sparassidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palystes_superciliosus
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Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.