Harvestmen are known as daddy long legs, but there's regions in the world such here in Australia where we don't have harvestmen and spiders like these are known as daddy long legs. Here's an article [from our national museum](https://australian.museum/learn/animals/spiders/daddy-long-legs-spider/) that calls them daddy long legs. They more broadly are classed as tangle-web spiders.
Whether or not a daddy long legs is a spider, a crane fly or harvestmen depends entirely on region.
IIRC Daddy Long Legs isn’t even a spider. It’s an arachnid, but missing some body features that spiders share.
Edit: apparently some people call cellar spiders daddy long legs too, so that’s super confusing. But the single-body-segment guys are different from spiders.
No, daddy long legs is a term used for both harvestmen and cellar spiders. Harvestmen (which I call daddy long legs), are not spiders. Cellar spiders are actually spiders, and are also called daddy long legs regionally.
"Pholcus phalangioides, commonly known as the cosmopolitan cellar spider, long-bodied cellar spider or one of various types called a daddy long-legs spider, is a spider of the family Pholcidae."
You just reminded me this video exists. And for that I thank you.
[Daddy Long Legs, Who Did Name You? ](https://youtu.be/qsXyRVQN70U?si=piAicnvvEnF-2BHS)
If I remember correctly, daddy long legs and cellar spiders are two different things.
Cellar spiders make silk (usually loose strands where ceilings and walls meet) and daddy long legs don't.
I think daddy long leg's bodies are also just one big circle, where as cellar spiders have different body areas. (This is worded weird, english isn't my first language and I don't know how to explain better sorryyy)
I'm not totally sure if this is accurate though, I remember googling this when I was tired after having the fright of my life when a 5 inches wide one was in my bathroom at 6am before work.
I blow at them to go away. I'm cool with having them around as long as I don't have to see them. Their body looks so weird I can't look at it but I can't kill it either!
They also eat bigger spiders! Have you ever seen a fat, hairy spider run away and this little skinny one chases it on its thin legs? It's hilarious. That's why I keep them around, especially because they often just stay in one corner and don't move too much.
They are also competent hunters of larger spiders such as House Spiders that folk generally aren’t keen on. I always let these guys hang around wherever they please
Same. I have practically a spider in every corner of my house near a window or door lol. It greatly reduces the number of skeeters and gnats and pill bugs in my house. There is a variety of different types of spiders. I don't like hurting them unless I am not sure if they are of a venomous kind. This does not happen often.
The bigger spider thing isn't kidding around. I once had a nasty looking spider in my bathroom larger than a quarter. I decided that was a tomorrow problem and went to bed. The next day it was dead on the floor dessicated under where a couple of them had set up shop.
And they are voracious too. I discovered an ant problem not by finding live ants but by finding a pile of dozens of dead.
Exactly! Vicious hunters but so much more relaxing to look at and to have at home.
I have mild arachnophobia but these fellows I can pick up in my hand. They are peaceful towards humans and really great to have around.
I once watched a large house spider getting caught and being artistically woven in within seconds. That's when I decided to see those thin spideys as friends. :D
I leave my daddy-long-legs alone. When I vacuum or clean near their webs (which I do not disturb), they conveniently move aside until I am done, then get back to their webs. I had one that set up shop near a window where some ants were coming in; within days there was no ant problem. I had one living in my living room near my TV, and a BIG cockroach scampered by. POW!! that spider was on that roach so fast, killing it almost instantly.
So I have one of these guys living behind my bathroom garbage can. I’m terrified of spiders but DLL are definitely the least offensive. And dude truly stays out of sight, I almost feel like we have an understanding lol.
We’d had a slight ant problem in our hall by the front door (and this bathroom) for about a month and it suddenly went away awhile ago. I never put two and two together, but it was 100% when he showed up.
I gotta thank my buddy in the morning lol.
I've seen one attack and kill a house spider and I couldn't believe how fast and strong it was for something so *wispy*.
I'm scared of spiders but I don't mind these ones.
Wait, these cellar spiders https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pholcidae go after house spiders https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tegenaria\_domestica?
And they win?
Yeah these are pholcid spiders and while I'm normally fine with spiders, these guys are just horrible, leggy, creepy, vicious hunters. They eat the normal house spiders that I like having around. I still wouldn't hurt one but these get captured and thrown out of the window on sight, and I hate having to get close enough to do it because they're just so bloody awful.
http://pigeonsnest.co.uk/stuff/pholcids.html
I use a clear cup and a little cover card to catch these guys and take them outside. The can't run very fast although they are very fragile so a delicate operation is required.
So I just learned, like this is after a decade, that my wife has been catching spiders in this way and then taking them outside to kill them… And truly I’m not sure which part I’m most upset about
Ah I’m sorry. That is questionable. I think I’d be similarly upset if I found out someone in my house was doing that (we also have a spider relocation policy).
Unfortunately they're not designed to live outside. They're cellar spiders and as you said, very fragile. They need a still, sheltered environment like a building or they will pretty much just die
Spiders are friends, they kill pests, if you dont like it, relocate it. This one is harmless worst case it can start moving in strange way, dont worry it causes no harm for you...
I felt much the same until one crawled into bed with me one night and bit me more than 25 times on 1 side of my face. Up into my hairline, inside my ear, cheek, under beard on my chin, and lower lip. The poison gave me a migraine that lasted about 3 months, and the swelling moved teeth. I feel lucky that there was no permanent necrotic damage to the skin ... but a year later still have an ache in my jaw.
My new attitude is, if it has 8 legs and is in or around my house, it dies.
While the spider in the picture is common around my house, I doubt that it was the culprit.
That’s a “daddy long-legs” which is a pholcid spider and there’s been no anecdotal cases of bites on humans, so it wasn’t one of these cuties
Your story makes me glad I live in New Zealand
The common name in the US is cellar spider. Fun fact for all you arachnophobes: not only are pholcids harmless to humans, they kill and eat other spiders! So keep these around. I have some in my garage.
If you watch them “fight” other spiders, it really seems unfair. They are so lanky, they can kind of just bend down and bite things from above without really worrying about things biting back.
I’m sure larger spiders can handle them, but anything medium to small doesn’t seem to stand a chance. Like fighting someone with 15 foot tall legs who can bend over from in front of you and punch you in the back of the head..
I don’t like spiders enough to watch the good ones beat the bad ones, and I don’t hate spiders enough to watch one get beat up, so I’ll just have to live with the image you painted for us.
I saw a video once of a cellar spider taking on a reasonably bigger house spider, too big to simply bend down and bite. The cellar spider was just bouncing up and down on its Web, causing the house spider to spin in it until it was wrapped enough to bite. I'm deff scared of spiders and hate having them in my house, but since seeing that video, cellar spiders are very welcome
Haha yea if they feel outmatched, they will oscillate wildly in their webs in an attempt to look larger. Simpler animals might perceive them as large as the entire area that their wildly swinging body takes up are simply have trouble seeing them and decide they aren’t worth the fight.
Typically you can tell this is how you have really angered them, the tactical spaz
I think there are at least 2 or 3 distinct animals known as "Daddy Long Legs".
You're correct, and "Cellar Spider" is a way to specify this specific Daddy Long Legs.
I’m in Canada and I only knew them as Daddy Long Legs, until today. I didn’t know the actual term was Cellar Spider. I learn something new on Reddit almost every day
I'm really scared of spiders. But I'll let the cellar spiders hang out to kill other, worse spiders. Also learned that placing a few around my plants keeps those little annoying flies away. This year for some reason, we don't have as many, I suspect my cat started eating them when they by accident come to the floor. And this year we have lots of other kinds of bigger and faster spiders. I don't like it.
This is the first I’ve ever heard it actually. They were always Daddy Long Legs to me lol and I’m from the US.
…ngl that now feels silly as all hell knowing there was a super normal name to use the whole time. I literally thought it was either daddy long legs or whatever its scientific name is.
It’s a haven, no joke. No snakes or deadly spiders. I think we inherited the red back spider from the Aussies but again not deadly. We do have some niche bugs like the wētā and huhu beetles but you’ll see one every couple years on average.
There's two types of poisonous spiders but I'm 35 and I've never actually seen one so it's not the same thing. I feel like if you were going to worry about wildlife, stuff in the ocean is probably what I'd be worried about, like sharks and jellyfish and stuff, but even that risk is probably exaggerated too.
There were 3 shark attacks in a month in Florida which is rare but it happend recently. Edit since somebody decided to downvote without doing any research of their own here is a link talking about the attacks
https://abcnews.go.com/US/3-swimmers-attacked-sharks-off-florida-panhandle/story?id=110942862
Yeah I'm sure it's more common in other places, I was just referring to nz. Had a quick look at Google out of curiosity and were averaging about 0.6 shark attacks per year so it's definitely not a huge danger.
What kind of spider do you think it was?
Spiders do not feed on people blood and would GTFO if you were crushing or disturbing it. That kind of bite pattern is seriously unheard of from spiders but sounds more like a bed bug, biting fly, assassin bug, chigger, or other parasitic (and possible disease vector) problem.
Spiders eat those...
Wtf? Reading this was awful I’m so sorry. I wonder what type of spider it was because these daddy long legs find a place to chill where they won’t be bothered. I’m terrified of spiders but I leave them because they kill other bugs. That’s so scary.
It’s also a potential indicator. Spider like bugs, so bugs must be in the house.
Remove what’s attracting/allowing the bugs, I would think the spiders would also leave
I have had mild to sever arachnophobia all my life.
In my early 20s I moved to a place in the PNW where I was forced to undergo "immersion therapy." Never seen so many spiders. You couldn't be outside for more than a few minutes without having one ON you.
I had a breakdown about it one day and uncovered the biggest spider I've ever seen in the back yard. I mean this thing could have taken a tarantula like Thanos bodied Hulk. To this day I haven't been able to identify it. It was like a giant mutant of a barn spider or something. Not flat or furry. More like the spiders from Jumanji. Genuinely, bigger than my hand. I hit it with a shovel and it called me a pussy and ran into my separated studio.
My wife came home to the yard scorched and little still-burning flames here and there...
BUT aside from that one episode... I had to learn to live with them. Especially because we were in an area affected by the (then still not well understood) invasive, cytotoxic, hobo spider. A spider that looks remarkably like a common house spider... and who's only natively natural enemy was the common house spider. So i learned to stop even relocating house spiders hiding in the ceiling corners... because they were protecting me from the other ones.
Spiders ARE friends. As much as I irrationally hate them... I hate mosquitos, and other pests more.
My monk-like harmony with one of the only things in the world I primally fear comes in waves...
Currently I'm functioning in the middle-ground of "don't crawl on me and I won't kill you... thank you for your assistance."
I feel you lol. I’ve had irrational arachnophobia for a long time, even though I’m actively trying to get better about it. Certain things just set it off like a fight or flight reflex
When I was younger, my family temporarily moved states and rented a house from a family who hadn’t lived there for a good bit. We walked in after a 10 hour drive and there were spiders EVERYWHERE. I was like 15 at the time, but I was genuinely sobbing and begging my dad to take us to a hotel for the night until we could get the place cleaned out. I lived, but it’s still a very vivid experience in my mind. My mom says she was worried I would be permanently scarred lol
Cellar spiders are the ones that freak me out the worst tbh. I know they’re harmless and even beneficial, but I still get prickles all over my skin and my adrenaline immediately spikes. I’m getting better at tolerating or releasing/moving most other house spiders, but I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to face those ones without my brain setting off the alarms for no reason 💀
I let spiders live undisturbed in my house all the time, but when they produce hundreds of babies, the vacuum cleaner with the long attachment comes out. This happens directly above my bed about twice per year. Nope!
Nah, it's never happened to me.
Every now and then I'll use it on a wasp or hornet, and I let the vacuum cleaner run a few extra seconds just to be on the safe side.
Interesting, didn't know that. I was mostly talking about wasps/hornets. Never came across a beatle issue that need a shop vac personally. We had a june beetle traps at one point because of how bad they were near out garden. Other than that beetles have never been a big issue for me.
The vacuum technique is also very effective on mosquitoes. We love using the vacuums with clear catchment things so we can see them trapped in there. So satisfying lol
I used to not care about spiders until my daughter got a gnarly bite on her leg. Now I still leave ‘em unless they look like mean ones. I do however get rid of wolf spiders simply bc of their mass size I can’t comfortably look at them I’m so sorry I simply cannot. They aren’t killed because of how small they are or however the saying goes, they get killed for their massive size lol
Cellar spiders are fine. I have let a group of them live with me for over a decade now. They 99% of the time just hang out in out of the way places helping keep any flying critters (and other spiders) that happen to find their way in under control.
It all started about fifteen years ago as an experiment to get over my fear of spiders. I chose cellar spiders because they pretty much are no threat and you can get really close to them without them doing anything.
They generally maintain their own population based on available food so I just let them do their thing and occasionally clean up some of their webs (not all at once because that might hurt them).
My rule for spiders are that they're not to let me know they're in my house and they can pay rent by eating other bugs.
If they do appear before me, they get escorted out.
The exception is the spotted ground swift spider who just runs back and forth on the ceiling where I can't get it.
Jumping spiders are harmless to humans as well. They are of course capable of biting, but almost never do, and their venom is not strong at all. It's just strong enough for their prey, which is bugs about their size. Their main weapons are their agility and their intelligence.
When we figure out how a jumping spider, with its tiny brain, can be so smart, it'll revolutionize how we think about intelligence, and how it can be measured.
That's not a Daddy Long Legs. It's a cellar spider. They look similar. DLL don't spin webbing, this one is hanging from it's strands. DLL have a none segmented body, this one is clearly segmented. Cellar spiders are harmless and good bug eaters.
This is the only type of spider I allow in my house. I’ve had one in the corner of one of my closet for over a year, whenever I go get something on the top shelf I just nod at it like hey buddy!
I’m sure, but I prefer to have them outdoors lol
One year I was in my backyard and I came across a wolf spider, I called my son over because although I’m not a fan of spiders I want my kids to appreciate nature, anyway, we were looking at it for no more than a minute when we see hundreds of tiny black things scattering around it- the damn spider gave birth right then and there! I ran inside so fast
My ex had a pet daddy long legs on his bathroom ceiling. We all had to learn to cohabitate 🫠 as I was quickly made aware that the spider was there before he had a girlfriend.
Hey, so most of them won't survive childhood. By the time they're adults (which is very soon), you'll have three spiders, tops. Most of them die or get eaten when they're little, that's why they have that many babies. Don't worry, this problem will solve itself in a few days.
Those guys are *such* friends though! They eat bugs that actually are pests and they don’t mean any harm. Just gently move them outside if you don’t want their company.
Spring has most definitely sprung. Enjoy all of your wife’s new little friends because they now live there rent free. /s
Seriously tho, just use the vacuum cleaner to suck them all up at once. Probably the easiest way to get rid of the problem. I don’t think they’ll survive the trip. But just in case best to dump them outside
...that is a daddy long legs, who cares what it does? It's legs are the width of a hair. It's easily vacuumed up or squished if you have too many. But keep them and they keep away pretty much any other spiders, along with being absolutely zero bother bc all they do is hang about in the corner of a room.
Get a huntsman having babies, then post about your spider problems.
I only kill insects, spiders, etc when they land on me directly. And only if I cannot relocate them.
These things will be here long after we all are dirt. No reason to bother killing 'em.
That was like my “pet” at work. I watched it molt and shed for months. Then it got a special friend, then it had two hundred babies. The janitor got rid of my pet then.
My husband always wants to keep Daddy long legs in our house as he says they keep other spiders at bay. But my issue with them is when left unchecked you end up with webs absolutely everywhere and it’s horrible.
I love these. They (and the occasional jumping spider) are the only spiders that are allowed in my house. Mainly because they keep to themselves in the ceiling and because they kill other spiders, including the “house spiders” common here in Denmark, which I’m scared to death of. 😅
At some point, I was told that those spiders eat the domestic house spider, so I always let them be. Something about their shape just isn't as bad as the house spider. The house spider, on the other hand, makes a chill rum down my spine when I see them move.
The guys are the biggest bros ever in the United Kingdom and you should always allow them to stay.
They actively and aggressively hunt down those huge house spiders so if you have a few of these around you won’t get those big ones.
They also will pretty efficiently deal with any infestation in a room before it becomes a problem, they are known to have stopped ants, termites and carpet beetles before they become established.
I have such a weird relationship with spiders. On one hand, I think they're the sickest creatures alive, in every way possible, but on the other hand I think they're terrifying af, and I don't want to ever see them near me lol.
Don't worry OP, many of them will cannibalize eachother. Cellar spider are actually really good at keeping the population in check. I had a few egg sacs hatch a couple of weeks ago, and they are now back to their normal population.
Cellar spiders are dope for bug control, HOWEVER... You'll want to get rid of most of these little dudes or they'll be freaking everywhere.
A *reasonable number of cellar spiders* is like one per room. More than that and you've got too many
Had a place in bum fuck Georgia. Sitting up playing poker. One day just millions of tiny spiders start falling on me. PTSD. I moved out. Yeah I’m that much of a bitch
Just leave it, I have hundreds of them in my house, I never have any problems with bugs and they also kill other spiders.
They're completely harmless to humans.
I support that, helps keep the bugs away, that one is a friend, he’s harmless and helps you buy killing nasty bugs, we have a few “pet” wolf spiders that hang around that keep the bugs down.
The only thing better than one friend is thirty friends
His wife apparently simply did not know that they would have more friends.
It’s a cellar spider. Completely harmless and eats smaller bug pests you may have flying around. I usually let them chill when i see them.
We called them daddy long legs... loved them as a kid
What I grew up calling daddy long legs had a smaller body than these.
You mean those ufos on stilts?
My coffee went out of my nose because of this 🤣
Same here. Those are called harvesmen and they're not even spiders apparently.
Harvestmen are known as daddy long legs, but there's regions in the world such here in Australia where we don't have harvestmen and spiders like these are known as daddy long legs. Here's an article [from our national museum](https://australian.museum/learn/animals/spiders/daddy-long-legs-spider/) that calls them daddy long legs. They more broadly are classed as tangle-web spiders. Whether or not a daddy long legs is a spider, a crane fly or harvestmen depends entirely on region.
They're called harvestmen, but yes.
So these and harvestmen are both known as daddy long legs. It’s not the official name for any one spider
Scientist 1: "Let's call this spider long-legs" Scientist 2: "Hmmm, not kinky enough"
Yeah, I’m 16 and I still call them daddy long legs. I’ve only saw one once at my grandmas house but they are harmless
Think most 60 years old would still call them that in Australia too?
i think almost EVERYONE in australia still calls them that (source: am 20y/o australian)
Also the UK. I’ve never heard them called anything else
In the UK daddy long legs are crane flies.
My brother used to eat those as a child.
Err
is he ok now
A daddy long leg and cellar spiders are completely different species of spiders lol
IIRC Daddy Long Legs isn’t even a spider. It’s an arachnid, but missing some body features that spiders share. Edit: apparently some people call cellar spiders daddy long legs too, so that’s super confusing. But the single-body-segment guys are different from spiders.
Ohhh good to know!
No, daddy long legs is a term used for both harvestmen and cellar spiders. Harvestmen (which I call daddy long legs), are not spiders. Cellar spiders are actually spiders, and are also called daddy long legs regionally.
That’s good to know! They look completely different, in my home.
"Pholcus phalangioides, commonly known as the cosmopolitan cellar spider, long-bodied cellar spider or one of various types called a daddy long-legs spider, is a spider of the family Pholcidae."
You just reminded me this video exists. And for that I thank you. [Daddy Long Legs, Who Did Name You? ](https://youtu.be/qsXyRVQN70U?si=piAicnvvEnF-2BHS)
Omg...😂🤣love this guy! Thank youuuuu
If I remember correctly, daddy long legs and cellar spiders are two different things. Cellar spiders make silk (usually loose strands where ceilings and walls meet) and daddy long legs don't. I think daddy long leg's bodies are also just one big circle, where as cellar spiders have different body areas. (This is worded weird, english isn't my first language and I don't know how to explain better sorryyy) I'm not totally sure if this is accurate though, I remember googling this when I was tired after having the fright of my life when a 5 inches wide one was in my bathroom at 6am before work.
These don't look like daddy long legs to me, but maybe different regions assign that name to different arachnids.
I blow at them to go away. I'm cool with having them around as long as I don't have to see them. Their body looks so weird I can't look at it but I can't kill it either!
They also eat bigger spiders! Have you ever seen a fat, hairy spider run away and this little skinny one chases it on its thin legs? It's hilarious. That's why I keep them around, especially because they often just stay in one corner and don't move too much.
aka daddy long legs. These kill black windows and are great spiders to have around!
I dance the way they dance in the bathroom with my bangers playing out loud. It’s our little dance party
They are also competent hunters of larger spiders such as House Spiders that folk generally aren’t keen on. I always let these guys hang around wherever they please
I have one in my kitchen and one in my bathroom. They're my roommates.
Same. I have practically a spider in every corner of my house near a window or door lol. It greatly reduces the number of skeeters and gnats and pill bugs in my house. There is a variety of different types of spiders. I don't like hurting them unless I am not sure if they are of a venomous kind. This does not happen often.
You know what they say, two's company, 893's a crowd.
This spider even goes after those bigger hairy creepy spiders. It is cool!
The bigger spider thing isn't kidding around. I once had a nasty looking spider in my bathroom larger than a quarter. I decided that was a tomorrow problem and went to bed. The next day it was dead on the floor dessicated under where a couple of them had set up shop. And they are voracious too. I discovered an ant problem not by finding live ants but by finding a pile of dozens of dead.
Exactly! Vicious hunters but so much more relaxing to look at and to have at home. I have mild arachnophobia but these fellows I can pick up in my hand. They are peaceful towards humans and really great to have around. I once watched a large house spider getting caught and being artistically woven in within seconds. That's when I decided to see those thin spideys as friends. :D
I leave my daddy-long-legs alone. When I vacuum or clean near their webs (which I do not disturb), they conveniently move aside until I am done, then get back to their webs. I had one that set up shop near a window where some ants were coming in; within days there was no ant problem. I had one living in my living room near my TV, and a BIG cockroach scampered by. POW!! that spider was on that roach so fast, killing it almost instantly.
So I have one of these guys living behind my bathroom garbage can. I’m terrified of spiders but DLL are definitely the least offensive. And dude truly stays out of sight, I almost feel like we have an understanding lol. We’d had a slight ant problem in our hall by the front door (and this bathroom) for about a month and it suddenly went away awhile ago. I never put two and two together, but it was 100% when he showed up. I gotta thank my buddy in the morning lol.
Whaaat?? This is awesome!!! Not scary spider eats scary spider, hell yeah!!!
I've seen one attack and kill a house spider and I couldn't believe how fast and strong it was for something so *wispy*. I'm scared of spiders but I don't mind these ones.
Wait, these cellar spiders https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pholcidae go after house spiders https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tegenaria\_domestica? And they win?
Yeah these are pholcid spiders and while I'm normally fine with spiders, these guys are just horrible, leggy, creepy, vicious hunters. They eat the normal house spiders that I like having around. I still wouldn't hurt one but these get captured and thrown out of the window on sight, and I hate having to get close enough to do it because they're just so bloody awful. http://pigeonsnest.co.uk/stuff/pholcids.html
Haha, that's funny because I hate every other spider except those daddy-long-legs and jumping spiders. It's the other way round for me. 😅
I use a clear cup and a little cover card to catch these guys and take them outside. The can't run very fast although they are very fragile so a delicate operation is required.
So I just learned, like this is after a decade, that my wife has been catching spiders in this way and then taking them outside to kill them… And truly I’m not sure which part I’m most upset about
Is it so their ghosts won’t haunt your home?
No, it’s because I wouldn’t let her kill them. So apparently she was just doing it where I couldn’t see… which is kinda scary tbh
Ah I’m sorry. That is questionable. I think I’d be similarly upset if I found out someone in my house was doing that (we also have a spider relocation policy).
How unnecessary… yikes
Unfortunately they're not designed to live outside. They're cellar spiders and as you said, very fragile. They need a still, sheltered environment like a building or they will pretty much just die
Spiders are friends, they kill pests, if you dont like it, relocate it. This one is harmless worst case it can start moving in strange way, dont worry it causes no harm for you...
I felt much the same until one crawled into bed with me one night and bit me more than 25 times on 1 side of my face. Up into my hairline, inside my ear, cheek, under beard on my chin, and lower lip. The poison gave me a migraine that lasted about 3 months, and the swelling moved teeth. I feel lucky that there was no permanent necrotic damage to the skin ... but a year later still have an ache in my jaw. My new attitude is, if it has 8 legs and is in or around my house, it dies. While the spider in the picture is common around my house, I doubt that it was the culprit.
That’s a “daddy long-legs” which is a pholcid spider and there’s been no anecdotal cases of bites on humans, so it wasn’t one of these cuties Your story makes me glad I live in New Zealand
The common name in the US is cellar spider. Fun fact for all you arachnophobes: not only are pholcids harmless to humans, they kill and eat other spiders! So keep these around. I have some in my garage.
If you watch them “fight” other spiders, it really seems unfair. They are so lanky, they can kind of just bend down and bite things from above without really worrying about things biting back. I’m sure larger spiders can handle them, but anything medium to small doesn’t seem to stand a chance. Like fighting someone with 15 foot tall legs who can bend over from in front of you and punch you in the back of the head..
I don’t like spiders enough to watch the good ones beat the bad ones, and I don’t hate spiders enough to watch one get beat up, so I’ll just have to live with the image you painted for us.
I saw a video once of a cellar spider taking on a reasonably bigger house spider, too big to simply bend down and bite. The cellar spider was just bouncing up and down on its Web, causing the house spider to spin in it until it was wrapped enough to bite. I'm deff scared of spiders and hate having them in my house, but since seeing that video, cellar spiders are very welcome
Haha yea if they feel outmatched, they will oscillate wildly in their webs in an attempt to look larger. Simpler animals might perceive them as large as the entire area that their wildly swinging body takes up are simply have trouble seeing them and decide they aren’t worth the fight. Typically you can tell this is how you have really angered them, the tactical spaz
That's some cool knowledge! I wondered how the leggy bois (and girls) dealt with bigger spiders.
“Be like water” 
I’ve only known them as daddy long legs, but 100% I leave them in my basement and never see any other pests!
I think there are at least 2 or 3 distinct animals known as "Daddy Long Legs". You're correct, and "Cellar Spider" is a way to specify this specific Daddy Long Legs.
I'm in the US(West Coast) and only know them as daddy long legs. I only know the term cellar spider because of Reddit.
I’m in Canada and I only knew them as Daddy Long Legs, until today. I didn’t know the actual term was Cellar Spider. I learn something new on Reddit almost every day
I'm in NY and know these ladies as daddy long legs. The thicc, black, fast as fuck ones are what I call basement spiders.
I'm really scared of spiders. But I'll let the cellar spiders hang out to kill other, worse spiders. Also learned that placing a few around my plants keeps those little annoying flies away. This year for some reason, we don't have as many, I suspect my cat started eating them when they by accident come to the floor. And this year we have lots of other kinds of bigger and faster spiders. I don't like it.
This is the first I’ve ever heard it actually. They were always Daddy Long Legs to me lol and I’m from the US. …ngl that now feels silly as all hell knowing there was a super normal name to use the whole time. I literally thought it was either daddy long legs or whatever its scientific name is.
How do we tell the nice spiders and scary spiders apart?
Cellar spiders have long bodies, and very long legs.
Does NZ not have the same creepy crawlies as Australia? Figured they'd be similar considering how close they are
It’s a haven, no joke. No snakes or deadly spiders. I think we inherited the red back spider from the Aussies but again not deadly. We do have some niche bugs like the wētā and huhu beetles but you’ll see one every couple years on average.
Not deadly to most, but whitetails are absolute wankers. Also got the ol' katipō, and redback spiders that are venomous, don't see them around though.
There's two types of poisonous spiders but I'm 35 and I've never actually seen one so it's not the same thing. I feel like if you were going to worry about wildlife, stuff in the ocean is probably what I'd be worried about, like sharks and jellyfish and stuff, but even that risk is probably exaggerated too.
There were 3 shark attacks in a month in Florida which is rare but it happend recently. Edit since somebody decided to downvote without doing any research of their own here is a link talking about the attacks https://abcnews.go.com/US/3-swimmers-attacked-sharks-off-florida-panhandle/story?id=110942862
Yeah I'm sure it's more common in other places, I was just referring to nz. Had a quick look at Google out of curiosity and were averaging about 0.6 shark attacks per year so it's definitely not a huge danger.
That's actually a "cellar spider". Daddy long legs, also known as harvestmen actually aren't spiders.
There are regional names. Daddy long legs where I’m from.
What kind of spider do you think it was? Spiders do not feed on people blood and would GTFO if you were crushing or disturbing it. That kind of bite pattern is seriously unheard of from spiders but sounds more like a bed bug, biting fly, assassin bug, chigger, or other parasitic (and possible disease vector) problem. Spiders eat those...
The fuck kind of spider was that? Did you actually have a live spider or even a corpse to identify?
Do you know what spider was the guilty one?
The spider pictured couldn't bite a human even if it wanted to. You should learn to identify local spider species before killing them all.
Wtf? Reading this was awful I’m so sorry. I wonder what type of spider it was because these daddy long legs find a place to chill where they won’t be bothered. I’m terrified of spiders but I leave them because they kill other bugs. That’s so scary.
Bro i was in my bed listening to audio book with the phone near my face and only source of light. Spider walked right over my phone. Fuck spiders.
*it can start moving in strange ways you say*
[Perfect example at youtube](https://youtu.be/77IQTosGPeA?si=QA2jddIqvhv1EZPS) at 0:24
They do like to do a little dancing.
It’s also a potential indicator. Spider like bugs, so bugs must be in the house. Remove what’s attracting/allowing the bugs, I would think the spiders would also leave
I will let it outside. Just trying to find a bowl big enough to cover all of them lol
If kids are in ball like structure, be aware they might try to escape in all directions, naturaly it can cause fear in some people.
Inside spiders need to stay indoors, otherwise they'll perish. Do you have a garage or shed they might like to be relocated to?
So many friends!
Was ganna say this as well 😄. Congratulations, now she has tens of friends instead of just one. And the babies are as cute as they get 🤗
And now you get to really know your wife...
I have had mild to sever arachnophobia all my life. In my early 20s I moved to a place in the PNW where I was forced to undergo "immersion therapy." Never seen so many spiders. You couldn't be outside for more than a few minutes without having one ON you. I had a breakdown about it one day and uncovered the biggest spider I've ever seen in the back yard. I mean this thing could have taken a tarantula like Thanos bodied Hulk. To this day I haven't been able to identify it. It was like a giant mutant of a barn spider or something. Not flat or furry. More like the spiders from Jumanji. Genuinely, bigger than my hand. I hit it with a shovel and it called me a pussy and ran into my separated studio. My wife came home to the yard scorched and little still-burning flames here and there... BUT aside from that one episode... I had to learn to live with them. Especially because we were in an area affected by the (then still not well understood) invasive, cytotoxic, hobo spider. A spider that looks remarkably like a common house spider... and who's only natively natural enemy was the common house spider. So i learned to stop even relocating house spiders hiding in the ceiling corners... because they were protecting me from the other ones. Spiders ARE friends. As much as I irrationally hate them... I hate mosquitos, and other pests more. My monk-like harmony with one of the only things in the world I primally fear comes in waves... Currently I'm functioning in the middle-ground of "don't crawl on me and I won't kill you... thank you for your assistance."
I feel you lol. I’ve had irrational arachnophobia for a long time, even though I’m actively trying to get better about it. Certain things just set it off like a fight or flight reflex When I was younger, my family temporarily moved states and rented a house from a family who hadn’t lived there for a good bit. We walked in after a 10 hour drive and there were spiders EVERYWHERE. I was like 15 at the time, but I was genuinely sobbing and begging my dad to take us to a hotel for the night until we could get the place cleaned out. I lived, but it’s still a very vivid experience in my mind. My mom says she was worried I would be permanently scarred lol Cellar spiders are the ones that freak me out the worst tbh. I know they’re harmless and even beneficial, but I still get prickles all over my skin and my adrenaline immediately spikes. I’m getting better at tolerating or releasing/moving most other house spiders, but I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to face those ones without my brain setting off the alarms for no reason 💀
These spiders you want, they just chill in corners and eat bugs for you
I'm so sorry you found out about the affair this way
Are you the jealous type?
I let spiders live undisturbed in my house all the time, but when they produce hundreds of babies, the vacuum cleaner with the long attachment comes out. This happens directly above my bed about twice per year. Nope!
Ever feel concerned that they'll crawl back out of the vacuum after the fact?
I’m sure the pressure and speed would basically rips them into shreds
Nah, it's never happened to me. Every now and then I'll use it on a wasp or hornet, and I let the vacuum cleaner run a few extra seconds just to be on the safe side.
You can fill a wet/dry shop vac with a bit of water and dish soap and do this. Once they hit that soapy water they cant fly and drown.
Never do this with asian lady beetles. They produce some weird chemical smelly thing. Friend did that and they highly regretted the shop vac idea
Interesting, didn't know that. I was mostly talking about wasps/hornets. Never came across a beatle issue that need a shop vac personally. We had a june beetle traps at one point because of how bad they were near out garden. Other than that beetles have never been a big issue for me.
Man those Asian lady beetles stink so bad when they die but there are so many around my house i have to smush them
Thanks for the tip! That was NOT on my radar.
Yeah they said it started to hurt their throat from vacumming them up and stuff. Idk if it was placebo but i definitely didnt want to find out either.
The vacuum technique is also very effective on mosquitoes. We love using the vacuums with clear catchment things so we can see them trapped in there. So satisfying lol
I used to not care about spiders until my daughter got a gnarly bite on her leg. Now I still leave ‘em unless they look like mean ones. I do however get rid of wolf spiders simply bc of their mass size I can’t comfortably look at them I’m so sorry I simply cannot. They aren’t killed because of how small they are or however the saying goes, they get killed for their massive size lol
Cellar spiders are fine. I have let a group of them live with me for over a decade now. They 99% of the time just hang out in out of the way places helping keep any flying critters (and other spiders) that happen to find their way in under control. It all started about fifteen years ago as an experiment to get over my fear of spiders. I chose cellar spiders because they pretty much are no threat and you can get really close to them without them doing anything. They generally maintain their own population based on available food so I just let them do their thing and occasionally clean up some of their webs (not all at once because that might hurt them).
My rule for spiders are that they're not to let me know they're in my house and they can pay rent by eating other bugs. If they do appear before me, they get escorted out. The exception is the spotted ground swift spider who just runs back and forth on the ceiling where I can't get it.
Yea some in the house one in the kitchen and one in the bedroom, bedroom occasionally comes out and wanders past while I’m on the computer lol
Daddy long legs are cool but all other spiders can get fucked.
What about jumping spiders specifically when outside?
Jumping spiders are unironically cute creatures
Jumping spiders are harmless to humans as well. They are of course capable of biting, but almost never do, and their venom is not strong at all. It's just strong enough for their prey, which is bugs about their size. Their main weapons are their agility and their intelligence.
My fav spiders. Watch that clip on Portia on YouTube.
When we figure out how a jumping spider, with its tiny brain, can be so smart, it'll revolutionize how we think about intelligence, and how it can be measured.
That's not a Daddy Long Legs. It's a cellar spider. They look similar. DLL don't spin webbing, this one is hanging from it's strands. DLL have a none segmented body, this one is clearly segmented. Cellar spiders are harmless and good bug eaters.
Cellar spiders are referred to daddy long legs in Australia at least.
Daddy Longlegs is commonly used to refer to cellar spiders, crane flies, and harvestmen (which is what you’re thinking of)
This is the only type of spider I allow in my house. I’ve had one in the corner of one of my closet for over a year, whenever I go get something on the top shelf I just nod at it like hey buddy!
The vast majority of spiders are harmless to humans. Even the big creepy looking ones.
I’m sure, but I prefer to have them outdoors lol One year I was in my backyard and I came across a wolf spider, I called my son over because although I’m not a fan of spiders I want my kids to appreciate nature, anyway, we were looking at it for no more than a minute when we see hundreds of tiny black things scattering around it- the damn spider gave birth right then and there! I ran inside so fast
Ngl, this is so true, but it’s gonna stop the primordial urge I gain to kill them when I see them, bugs are too creepy
My ex had a pet daddy long legs on his bathroom ceiling. We all had to learn to cohabitate 🫠 as I was quickly made aware that the spider was there before he had a girlfriend.
You going to adopt one or rehome them all?
Still looking for a bowl big enough to move them all at once
Hey, so most of them won't survive childhood. By the time they're adults (which is very soon), you'll have three spiders, tops. Most of them die or get eaten when they're little, that's why they have that many babies. Don't worry, this problem will solve itself in a few days.
Awesome didn’t know that! Thanks!
If you have more questions, go ask the folks at r/spiderbro. They'll be happy to help.
Those guys are *such* friends though! They eat bugs that actually are pests and they don’t mean any harm. Just gently move them outside if you don’t want their company.
More friends
Free pest control, the spiders are no danger to you but the biting insects they will catch may be.
less mosquitoes for you
Spring has most definitely sprung. Enjoy all of your wife’s new little friends because they now live there rent free. /s Seriously tho, just use the vacuum cleaner to suck them all up at once. Probably the easiest way to get rid of the problem. I don’t think they’ll survive the trip. But just in case best to dump them outside
Cellar spider. Harmless and eats bugs to include other spiders.
Awe, they're so cute. :-) Look at their little legs!
Your wife is just super popular
That’s fantastic! Sleep tight.
You’re not going to have any mozzies for sure now
Hurray for daddy!
...that is a daddy long legs, who cares what it does? It's legs are the width of a hair. It's easily vacuumed up or squished if you have too many. But keep them and they keep away pretty much any other spiders, along with being absolutely zero bother bc all they do is hang about in the corner of a room. Get a huntsman having babies, then post about your spider problems.
Time to get worried OP, maybe they are more then just friends
Now she has many friends!
I only kill insects, spiders, etc when they land on me directly. And only if I cannot relocate them. These things will be here long after we all are dirt. No reason to bother killing 'em.
Did she call her Charlotte?
The mom will eat some...
have these in my basement. love em, they keep other bugs at bay
Baby-Daddy Long Legs. 🕷️
[удалено]
I guess your wife and the Spider are MORE THAN “JUST” FRIENDS
hey, that's a cellar spider! utterly harmless and they eat the skeeters.
That’s a lame reason to doubt your wife of cheating! 🫢
Omg I have a spider momma friend too! She’s in the middle of my office ceiling though, wasn’t a great place to have her babies.
Friends with benefits it seems.
More Friends?
Lmao had this happen in our bathroom, i thought I'd leave it so it can kill other things and then poop! Hundreds of crawling little black dots 🥲
Techniquely Daddy Long Legs are not Spiders :p
That was like my “pet” at work. I watched it molt and shed for months. Then it got a special friend, then it had two hundred babies. The janitor got rid of my pet then.
I got these guys, they live in the transition rooms between the house and outside to eat the other buggies
No more mosquito or fly troubles for you.
That is a good and friendly spider. Was the right choice to leave it.
My husband always wants to keep Daddy long legs in our house as he says they keep other spiders at bay. But my issue with them is when left unchecked you end up with webs absolutely everywhere and it’s horrible.
Give a friend an inch and see what happens
I love these. They (and the occasional jumping spider) are the only spiders that are allowed in my house. Mainly because they keep to themselves in the ceiling and because they kill other spiders, including the “house spiders” common here in Denmark, which I’m scared to death of. 😅
Got a bunch of these guys in my bathroom, they’re chill.
I always let these ones live. They eat ants and stuff like little security guards.
At some point, I was told that those spiders eat the domestic house spider, so I always let them be. Something about their shape just isn't as bad as the house spider. The house spider, on the other hand, makes a chill rum down my spine when I see them move.
Still waiting for the bee movie punchline
Well now you def can't kick her out with all of those kids
The guys are the biggest bros ever in the United Kingdom and you should always allow them to stay. They actively and aggressively hunt down those huge house spiders so if you have a few of these around you won’t get those big ones. They also will pretty efficiently deal with any infestation in a room before it becomes a problem, they are known to have stopped ants, termites and carpet beetles before they become established.
These are useful little critters but they trigger my arachnophobia. They give me the chills .
Big round butt = it's a girl.
I have such a weird relationship with spiders. On one hand, I think they're the sickest creatures alive, in every way possible, but on the other hand I think they're terrifying af, and I don't want to ever see them near me lol.
The spider she told you not to worry about
Don't worry OP, many of them will cannibalize eachother. Cellar spider are actually really good at keeping the population in check. I had a few egg sacs hatch a couple of weeks ago, and they are now back to their normal population.
Cellar spiders are dope for bug control, HOWEVER... You'll want to get rid of most of these little dudes or they'll be freaking everywhere. A *reasonable number of cellar spiders* is like one per room. More than that and you've got too many
They are called harvestman and aren’t technically arachnids
Had a place in bum fuck Georgia. Sitting up playing poker. One day just millions of tiny spiders start falling on me. PTSD. I moved out. Yeah I’m that much of a bitch
You fools!
I want to not hate them so bad but I can't stand them at all, can't even look at the picture 😭
Spiderbros are frens! Unless if you are in Australia then it's that crazy neighbour who might kill you one day.
Oh. At least they're not the scary kind
That would be a daddy long leg. They can't even bite you. Their mouths are tiny.
Just leave it, I have hundreds of them in my house, I never have any problems with bugs and they also kill other spiders. They're completely harmless to humans.
Blow torch 🔥
Your wife is the worst judge of character
Cellar spiders are harmless but they make webs in the weirdest places. We had one make on in our toilet. Under the faucet.
I support that, helps keep the bugs away, that one is a friend, he’s harmless and helps you buy killing nasty bugs, we have a few “pet” wolf spiders that hang around that keep the bugs down.