Pest Expert Overview: Cellar Spiders in Bryan & College Station
Cellar Spiders are gray to brown medium sized spiders with extremely long legs. These are the spiders you’ll see living in messy, irregular webs in the upper corners of your garage. They are also sometimes called daddy longlegs spiders. This can be a little confusing since Huntsmen, a spider relative, are also called daddy longlegs. Cellar Spiders were actually featured on Episode 13 of MythBusters where host Adam Savage let a Cellar Spider bite him. The myth was that their venom was extremely toxic, but their fangs couldn’t penetrate human skin. The myth was busted! After repeatedly poking and pinching the spider, Adam finally got a bite that burned slightly for a few minutes then dissipated.
Cellar Spiders belong to the Pholcidae family and are found on every continent except Antarctica. There are 1500 species World-wide, 18 of which are found in Texas.
Life Cycle
Most Cellar Spiders sit on their webs awaiting other insects to blunder by and get tangled in the strands. The web is actually not sticky, but relies on the haphazard tangles to trap insects. Some species, however, are marauders! They approach the webs of other spiders and feign being captured in the web. When the other spider attacks, the Cellar Spider casts web strands over the other spider until it is immobilized. Some Cellar Spider species actually specialize in using this technique on Black Widows!
Why are they Pests?
Cellar Spiders are beneficial predators of other insects and spiders. However, they can become very numerous in garages and other storage spaces, creating quite a mess of tangled webs. As mentioned above, they are not a threat to humans, so it’s only their messiness that makes them a pest.
Cellar Spider Prevention
- Sweep webs down periodically
- Use LED lighting outside to reduce the amount of prey for Cellar Spiders
- Keep garage door closed when not in use
Professional Cellar Spider Control
If you are dealing with an infestation of cellar spiders, Venus Pest Company can help. Founded by Aggie Entomologist Dr. Scott Lingren, we provide expert, eco-friendly Integrated Pest Management solutions in Bryan and College Station. To get started, fill out the contact form, call/text 979.774.0486 or email [email protected]. Don’t let nuisance pests take over your home!
