# Mouse spider (*Scotophaeus blackwalli*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/mouse-spider  
Data as of: 2026-11-14

The mouse spider (Scotophaeus blackwalli) is a species in the family Gnaphosidae, order Araneae. Recorded adults reach 1.17 cm in length.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | Not recorded |
| Length | 4.7 mm – 1.17 cm |
| Lifespan | Not recorded |
| Diet | Invertivore |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | forest, human_modified |
| Young per litter or clutch | Not recorded |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Conservation status | Not recorded |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Introduced range

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists it as introduced in 3 countries. Introduced: Canada, South Africa, United States. Source: https://griis.org/ (CC BY 4.0).

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Arthropoda
- class: Arachnida
- order: Araneae
- family: Gnaphosidae
- genus: Scotophaeus
- species: *Scotophaeus blackwalli* (Thorell, 1871)

Synonyms: *Drassodes blackwalli*, *Drassodes californicus*, *Drassodes voigti*, *Drassus blackwalli*, *Drassus blackwalli*, *Drassus furtadoi*, *Drassus gotlandicus*, *Drassus immundus*, *Drassus ravidus*, *Drassus sericeus*, *Drassus voigtii*, *Herpyllus blackwalli*, *Herpyllus blackwalli*, *Herpyllus pius*, *Scotophaeus californicus*, *Scotophaeus furtadoi*, *Scotophaeus pius*, *Scotophaeus sericeus*, *Scotophaeus voigti*

## Common questions

### How big is the mouse spider?

An adult mouse spider measures 4.7 mm – 1.17 cm long, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

### Is the mouse spider an invasive species?

The Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species lists the mouse spider as introduced in 3 countries: Canada, South Africa and United States, but does not flag it as invasive in any of them.

### What kind of animal is the mouse spider?

The mouse spider (Scotophaeus blackwalli) belongs to the family Gnaphosidae in the order Araneae.

## Sources

- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species (GRIIS)](https://griis.org/), CC BY 4.0, 2026-11-13. Pagad, S., Genovesi, P., Carnevali, L., Schigel, D. & McGeoch, M.A. (2018) Introducing the Global Register of Introduced and Invasive Species. Scientific Data 5: 170202. https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2017.202. Country checklists published through GBIF by the IUCN SSC Invasive Species Specialist Group.
- [TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe](https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844), CC BY 4.0, 2.0. Chauvier, Y., Adde, A., Bergamini, A. et al. (2025) TraitCH: a multi-taxa functional trait dataset for Switzerland and Europe. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15063844

Cite as: Mouse spider (Scotophaeus blackwalli). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/mouse-spider