She came in out of the cold. Macro shot of female giant house spider, Hollybrook, Shillingstone. The Tegenaria Parietina, is known as the cardinal spider in Britain because of the legend that Cardinal Thomas Woolsey was terrified by this species at Hampton Court back in the 16th century. Although they are mainly thought to be harmless to humans, these arachnids get a bad reputation because of their huge size, incredible speed and their nocturnal habits.

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