Agelenidae C. L. Koch, 1837

One species in this family sometimes lives in people's houses, and builds a funnel-web in dusty corners.

Funnel-web spiders are medium-sized (adults 8-12 mm long), usually brown and gray, with banded legs and spots on their back. They have eight eyes in two rows of four. There are other kinds of spiders that match this description, so this family is best recognized by the shape of the web (see sections below).

All spiders have two body-segments, a cephalothorax in front and an abdomen behind. They have eight legs, all attached to the cephalothorax. On the front they have two small "mini-legs" called palps. These are used to grab prey, and in mating, and are often bigger in male spiders than in females. All spiders have fangs that they use to bite their prey with, and most have venom glands.

Other Physical Features: bilateral symmetry

Sexual Dimorphism: female larger

These spiders build their webs close to the ground, in grass or other low vegetation, or in abandoned small mammal burrows.

Habitat Regions: temperate ; tropical ; terrestrial

Terrestrial Biomes: chaparral ; forest ; rainforest ; scrub forest

Species in this family build a sheet web that has a funnel-shaped retreat for the spider on one side. The web is not sticky, instead the strands slow down prey that walk into it, as their feet fall through. The spider can walk on top of it, so darts out of his funnel to grab and bite. These spiders eat mainly flying Insecta that wander into their webs.