Now in a comprehensively revised and updated new edition, Britain’s Spiders is a guide to all 38 of the British families, focussing on spiders that can be identified in the field. Illustrated with a remarkable collection of photographs, it is designed to be accessible to a wide audience, including those new to spider identification. This book pushes the boundaries of field identification for this challenging group, combining information on features that can be seen with the naked eye or a hand lens with additional evidence from webs, egg sacs, behaviour, phenology, habitats and distributions. Individual accounts cover 404 species—all of Britain’s “macro” spiders and the larger money spiders, with the limitations to field identification clearly explained. This new edition includes nine species new to Britain, many recent name changes, updated distribution maps and species information, new guides to help identify spider families and distinctive species, and the latest species checklist.
- A guide to spider families, based on features recognizable in the field, focussing on body shape and other characteristics, as well as separate guides to webs and egg-sacs
- Detailed accounts and more than 700 stunning photographs highlight key identification features for each genus and species, and include information on status, behaviour and habitats
- Up-to-date distribution maps, and charts showing adult seasonality
- Introductory chapters on the biology of spiders, and where, when and how to find them, including equipment needed in the field
- A complete list of the spiders recorded in Britain, indicating the ease of identification as well as rarity and conservation status
- Information on how to record spiders and make your records count, and guidance on how to take your interest further
- New to this edition: coverage of nine species new to Britain, updated species information and distribution maps, identification guides to spider families and distinctive species, and the latest species checklist
Awards and Recognition
- One of Radio Times’s “books of the year from our columnists”
Lawrence Bee is an ecological consultant and educator and the author of the Field Studies Council's Guide to House and Garden Spiders. Geoff Oxford, a biologist who taught at the University of York for more than four decades, is an authority on spider colour variation and speciation. Helen Smith is a conservation biologist who leads the conservation programme for the UK’s endangered Fen Raft Spider. This book is produced in collaboration with the British Arachnological Society, of which all three authors are active members.
"How many different spiders do you think we have here in the UK? Over 400 of them are detailed in this truly incredible book by WILDGuides . . . don’t be scared of them . . . find out more about them and you may get hooked, like me!"—Kate MacRae, @katemacrae, Twitter
"A brilliant book collection . . . each volume is a colourful, fact-filled introduction to the animals, insects, plants and habitats that makes watching wildlife so fascinating."—Stuart Winter, Sunday Express
"The guide has the feel of a group of experts (the authors) always peering over your shoulder and offering advice – pointing out important diagnostic features or suggesting the next section of the key to read and understand, till you finally arrive at the correct species name. . . . packed with information about the British spider fauna and is a ‘must-have’ for any entomologist wishing to study arachnids."—John Badmin, British Journal of Entomology and Natural History
"For beginners or indeed anyone who does not already own a copy of this guide it is a must have volume that provides a comprehensive and easy to use introduction to this fascinating group. The authors are to be congratulated on improving an already excellent guide and producing a gateway to what was once perceived as a difficult and demanding group."—Peter Smithers, Antenna
"Outstanding guide . . . an essential purchase for the dedicated naturalist."—Roy Stewart, British Naturalist’s Association
"Britain’s Spiders is a must have for anyone interested in identifying spiders; it crams an amazing amount of information into a compact and affordable guide. . . . Sure to inspire a new generation of spider recorders."—Victoria Burton, Amateur Entomological Society
"This fine work, co-produced with the British Arachnological Society, offers the best introduction and field guide to British spiders by a country mile."—David Clements MRSB, Biologist
"Super book."—Eric Brown, News Shopper
"A revelation of wonders."—Simon Barnes, Radio Times
“This is a guide that will revolutionise the study of British spiders, allowing confident field identification of many species and encouraging a new cohort of natural historians to take a closer look at these extraordinary creatures.”—Peter Smithers, Antenna (Royal Entomological Society)
“One reason arachnids are so misunderstood is a general lack of decent field guides to teach us anything about them, a gap this book fills with aplomb.”—Ross Piper, BBC Wildlife
