Cardinal Spider

The cardinal spider, Tegenaria parietina, is a species of spider native to Europe and the largest native spider species in the United Kingdom, its common name drawn from folklore linking it to Cardinal Wolsey at Hampton Court. Females reach a body length up to 20 millimeters and males up to 17 millimeters, with leg spans up to three times the body length, reddish-brown coloring much paler in juveniles, and elongated, densely haired front legs that distinguish it from related species. Females can live up to eight years while males die shortly after mating, and both mainly live in buildings and walls. First described in 1785, the species has since spread, likely through human activity, from northern Africa to Central Asia and Sri Lanka and from the West Indies to Uruguay and Argentina; a population once classified separately as Tegenaria taprobanica was merged into this species in 2013.