Daddy Long Legs
Also Known As Cellar Spider
(Family Pholcidae)
Appearance
Cellar spiders, often called daddy long legs, are gray to light brown in color. They have a very thin shape and are fragile spiders. With their legs expanded they appear much larger than they actually are.
Size
The body ranges from 1/10 to ½-inch in length, but with the legs extended it may be up to 2-inches long.
Behavior
When daddy long legs spiders are threatened by a touch to the web or when too large a prey becomes entangled, it vibrates rapidly in a gyrating motion in its web and becomes blurred and almost invisible. For this reason it has sometimes been called a "vibrating spider." Doing so might make it difficult for a predator to see exactly where the spider is, or may increase the chances of capturing insects that have just brushed their web and are still hovering nearby. If the spider continues to be harassed it will retreat into a corner or drop from its web.
Habitat
Daddy long legs are web-weaving spiders and are distributed worldwide. They hang inverted in messy, irregular, tangled webs. These webs are constructed in dark and damp recesses, in caves, under rocks and loose bark, abandoned mammal burrows, and undisturbed areas in buildings and cellars (hence the common name "cellar spiders").
Interesting Facts
There is an urban legend stating that daddy long legs spiders have the most potent venom of any spider, but that their fangs are either too small or too weak to puncture human skin. They do have a short fang structure, but their venom is not known to be toxic to humans.
Control
Do you live in Florida and think that this spider may be invading your home? Hulett Environmental Services offers specialty pest control treatments designed to control and eliminate this pest!
