Running Foliage Spider species Agroeca sp
This spider family used to be part of the Sac Spider family, but is considered to be a family on their own nowadays. There are some 20 species in our region. The spiders are hardly ever seen, for most species are nocturnal animals. Unseen doesn't mean unliked. Especially the members of the genus Agroeca are quite popular. They are the ones resposible for the lantern shaped egg cocoons hanging around. There are two types of "elf lights":
Drop-like cocoons, made by the Heathland Spider and some others, while Agroeca brunnea and relatives make the beautiful bell-shaped cocoons. These are usually attached to stems of plants, but once we discovered one on the wall of our house. Sometimes you see white bells like the one in the picture, but usually the spider hides them by sticking sand grains onto them.
