Rise of the spiders in Stedham

Sussex county recorders for spiders Andy Phillips and Graeme Lyons carried out the survey, which took place throughout last summer.

Writing for the Sussex Wildlife Trust website, Graeme said: “2012 was the year that I got hooked on spiders and, thanks to Andy’s help and enthusiasm, I am still hooked.

“The array of unusua-shaped and coloured spiders that we recorded was staggering; the spiders of Stedham and Iping are so rich and varied compared to the species we tend to see in our homes.”

He went on to say they started the survey with a site list of 160 species, mostly caried out by Peter Merrett in the late 1960s and Andy in 2007 and 2009.

This summer they added the new species, bringing the total up to 204.

Graeme added: “What’s even more impressive is that a site list of 204 species is equivalent to around 30 per cent of all the spiders found in Britain.”