The creatures most correctly called
Daddy longlegs, or harvestmen, are familiar Missouri animals. They are not spiders, but opilionids. Unlike spiders, they have a fused body form and lack silk and venom glands. In harvestmen, the body is a simple oval, and it's usually hard to tell where the “head” ends and the segmented “abdomen” begins.
Its exaggerated notoriety as a highly venomous spider may have arisen after being observed preying on other well-known arachnids, including the redback spider Latrodectus hasselti and the grey huntsman Holconia immanis. However, what it lacks in venom potency is compensated for by its hunting versatility.
An article published in the journal ZooKeys, titled "A new monster from the southwest Oregon Forests," explains how scientists came across the previously unknown creature. Scientists first discovered the Cryptomaster leviathan, a cousin of the new arachnid species, in 1969 in Gold Beach.
The daddy longlegs is actually a large type of cranefly, of which there are 94 species in the UK. It is familiar to us in its adult form as the gangly insect that flits around our homes in summer. As a larva, it is a grey grub (also known as a 'leatherjacket') that lives underground, feeding on plants stems and roots.
What are craneflies? Craneflies, also referred to as daddy long legs, have very long legs, thin wings and a thin body, which can make them look a bit like a giant mosquito. To tell them apart, look at the mouthpart, called a proboscis. If it doesn't have a long mouthpart, it's probably a harmless cranefly.
Daddy long-legs are very beneficial to a house or home. They are omnivores and eat insects, other spiders, pests such as aphids, dead insects, fungus, bird droppings, worms, and snails. They are great to have in a house or garden.
Yet despite their apparent harmlessness, Daddy-long-legs have little trouble catching, wrapping and killing much larger Huntsman spiders. They have even been known to catch Redback spiders and Funnel-web spiders, both of which are far larger and more toxic than the Daddy-long-legs. So, what's their secret?
Daddy Long Legs
But like common household spiders, you should leave these guys alone if you spot them in your house. They aren't poisonous to humans and basically couldn't even really bite us (their mouths are too small). They prefer eating fruit and other insects, which they'll happily catch and rid your home of.
Tip for preventing daddy long legs: Pour 1 cup white vinegar and 1/3 cup vanilla extract into a spray bottle and shake. Spray areas where the daddy long legs have been spotted indoors and out. The smell will repel the insects.
Identification. Daddy-long-legs spiders are easily recognised by their extremely long, skinny legs and small body. Pholcus phalangioides has a brown patch on its pale carapace and a cream to pale brown, lightly patterned abdomen.
5. Tailed Cellar Spider (Crossopriza lyoni) Like other spiders that have the name daddy long leg the tailed cellar spider has a small body and long, thin legs.
Earwigs have the scientific name dermaptera while Jenny Long Legs (or Daddy Long Legs in England) is the colloquial name for the crane fly or tipulidae.
Like most spiders, the daddy long legs spider is not known to pose any threat to humans, whether in terms of spider bites or venom. On the other hand, the harvestmen are poisonous, but they too do not pose any threat to humans.
Use natural oils such as peppermint or citrus spray
Spiders dislike the scent of peppermint, eucalyptus oil, tea-tree, or citrus. Thus, regularly spraying them down likely entrances deters them from coming in. Simply fill a standard spray bottle with water.
"They're not looking for shelter, they're out looking for a mate and then looking to lay eggs, they end up in houses because their favourite habitat is short grass and we have lawns." Daddy long legs lay eggs in the ground which can sit for a year. They grow, hatch out of the shell and pop out of your lawn.
Where can I find them in the house and outside? Huntsman spiders are found in many different places both inside and outside the home. They like to hide in dark, secluded areas such as under furniture, in closets, or in basements. They can also be found outdoors in gardens, sheds, or garages.
Food sources: Daddy long legs feed on decaying plant matter and small invertebrates, so if you have a lot of dead leaves or other organic matter around your home, this can attract them. They may also be attracted to areas with a lot of insects, as these are a food source for many species.
Some species abseil
Some spiders find the creases in your blanket a very appealing place to snuggle up. If your bed is against a wall, spiders such as Steatoda grossa (false widow) or Pholcus phalangioides (the daddy-long-legs spider) are likely to build a web down the side.
According to an old French peasant legend, seeing a daddy longlegs in the evening is a good thing, foretelling good fortune, happiness, and hope.
Because they don't tolerate cold well, daddy longlegs will sometimes gather in large masses when they find a sufficiently warm spot in dropping temperatures. A few years ago, two different discoveries of such arachnid “clumps” were reported in Alaska.
Crane flies
They go by many names, including daddy long legs, mosquito eaters, and mosquito hawks. But they are not mosquitoes, and they do not eat mosquitoes.
An abundance of daddy-long-legs in your home can signal a larger pest problem since daddy-long legs feed on other pests. While daddy long leg spiders are relatively harmless, most of us don't want to live with an abundance of them in our Beaumont homes!