“Daddy longlegs” is also a name applied to the Opiliones, a superficially similar group that is only distantly related to the cellar spider.Īlso called harvestmen, Opiliones share the delicate legs of Pholcus. Pholcus is sometimes referred to with the common name “daddy longlegs,” which highlights why serious students of spiders avoid common names altogether in favor of more precise, if sometimes awkward, scientific names. The cellar spider’s habits don’t help much: As their common name suggests, they’re animals of dark, damp places, building their untidy webs in corners or between rafters in cellars, attics, or closets. Many people are misguided enough to find spiders of any sort to be repulsive, and the exaggerated anatomy of a cellar spider seems to make this species especially reviled. But the salient trait of this species is a set of outrageously long, thin legs: On a large female, the span of those threadlike limbs may approach three inches. With a body length ranging up to nearly half an inch, they’re good-size spiders to start with. The bodies of daddy long-legs spiders are almost translucent, meaning that if they’re viewed under a microscope you’ll see their blood moving through them.These things are, let’s admit, a bit creepy both in appearance and in habits. In fact, it’s now one of Australia’s most common spider species. The daddy long-legs is originally from subtropical Asia but, having accompanied humans in their global spread, the species is now found throughout the world in warm locations, including across Australia. Fortunately, it prefers to live in warm dark places, such as those in inside houses and other buildings, not outside in natural habitats. But this is an introduced species and, unfortunately, it’s usually native spider species that are most affected by its presence. Yes, they’re a more environmentally friendly alternative to using pesticides as a way to keep venomous spider numbers down around your house. The reputation, however, of this species for hunting, attacking, and eating other spiders, including species that are potentially dangerous to humans, such as redbacks, is certainly well-deserved.Īnd that makes daddy long-legs particularly useful to have around the home. And there’s no proof that the venom is particularly potent, even against insects – its main prey – let alone mammals, such as humans. Having tiny fangs no longer than 0.25mm, it’s unlikely that if you were bitten by one that you’d even notice it barely penetrating your skin. That claim was likely to have merely been an urban myth based on no evidence other than perhaps observations of daddy long-legs killing other, extremely dangerous, spider species.Īlthough, it’s certainly possible for a person to receive a bite from a daddy long-legs, few have ever been reported. But that, it’s now known, is certainly not true. It was once widely thought that the venom of this spider is the most toxic of all spiders. The female’s body is 8mm long and the male’s is slightly smaller at 6mm (plus legs, which are about 5 times longer than the body)
Insects, other spiders, and other small invertebrate