Larinioides cornutus

Females reach a body length of about 13 mm, males up to 8 mm. A variable species with a dark, distinct V-shape on the abdomen above which there a two pincer like markings. Prosoma (cephalothorax) brown (c.f. Larinioides sclopetarius - prosoma grey). 

Confirmation of this species: "Requires examination at high magnification in good lighting, typically examination of the genitalia." Bee, L., Oxford, G., & Smith, H. (2020). Britain's Spiders: A Field Guide. Second Edition. Princeton University Press.

These spiders are most often found in damper areas, especially near to water.

Spring to autumn.

The web is built between grasses, or in low shrubbery. They hide during the day in a silken retreat that opens at the bottom, masked with plant and animal matter and leave it during the night. The web is remade in the evening. The male lives with the female during mating time, which is in autumn and again in spring. The female produces three to five yellow egg sacs during the summer.

Widespread and common throughout Britain.

Common in Leicestershire and Rutland.

7,479 British records to 2015.