![long body cellar spider up close long body cellar spider up close](https://observation.org/media/photo/7907055.jpg)
After that the babies are on their own, but that’s more care than many get in the spider world.Ĭouple young Cellar Spiders hanging out on the basement wall… The mother Cellar Spider will then continue to guard her newly hatched babies for up to 9 days.
![long body cellar spider up close long body cellar spider up close](https://bugwoodcloud.org/images/768x512/5436399.jpg)
Here’s another interesting snippet I learned about Cellar Spiders: Expectant mother spiders carry their eggs sacs (spiders typically bunch their eggs into a bundle(s) tied up with a bit of silk =egg sac) around in their mouths until they hatch. I wonder if that argument would have worked when my Mom told me to clean my room as a kid? But, Mom, I’m saving my energy like a Cellar Spider so I can live longer and eat less! I’m guessing probably not, but let me know if you try it, lol. Without the spider needing to add any stickiness to the silk strands of the web! As you might imagine, this saves a ton of important energy and internal resources for Cellar Spiders - most likely helping them do so well in areas that generally don’t have a lot of things to eat.
![long body cellar spider up close long body cellar spider up close](https://spiderid.com/wp-content/uploads/971E899E-E4E6-4429-A957-02C54BAE3BE5.jpeg)
The web is so messy, that the prey critters that run (or fly) into it can’t find their way out and get trapped. There is actually a good reason for creating such a messy web though. Maybe that’s why they usually hang upside-down on their webs? Because they are so messy, they can’t tell the top from bottom? Nah, I’m sure there is a logical scientific reason I’m not aware of, but it sounded funny in my head.Ĭellar Spider above the basement door with some messy webbing Cellar Spiders make rather messy looking webs compared to some of the works of art you see from other types of spiders. They prefer sheltered habitats with low light, typically in caves or hollows, under rocks, logs, or other ledges, or around human structures like attics, garages, and the ceilings and corners of my basement. Male?Ĭellar Spiders, also commonly called “daddy long-legs” (although I grew up calling a very different spindle-legged critter that name), can be found in most parts of the world ( see map). They are notably helping keep the other buggy critters that come into the house in line and are completely harmless to me… Seems like a good deal since they’re here anyway.įull grown Cellar Spider, Pholcus sp. Unless I catch one to put it under the microscope, I will probably never know which species I’m living with or if they are native or not. Some of the Cellar Spider species are native, while others are not. There are about 49 different species in the family found in North America, 13 of which are in the genus Pholcus (which I think my spiders are). The ones I have are most likely in the genus Pholcus, although I’m not sure which species they are. Cellar Spiders are super spindly looking spiders in the family Pholcidae. Of all the different spiders I’ve shared space with, I think these have been the best roommates. Now, in my current house, I have full time resident Cellar Spiders. Not sure if that was normal, or just for my benefit…įull grown Cellar Spider, Pholcus sp. The sac spiders also liked to spring off the walls at you if you disturbed them. They would be in one place, tucked in their little webby sac one minute, and then a few hours later they’d have moved to another crevice somewhere else in the house – sac and all. Fun times… In the first house I had with my partner we had sac spiders that loved the crevices where the ceilings met the walls. During my postdoc, there were some kind of wandering/non-web-making spiders that would climb up on the ceiling, where all the recessed lights were, and then sporadically drop on you when you walked underneath. Pretty much every spring, this would result in a tiny baby spider explosion in the basement, but that’s a story for another time, lol. Which of course would frequently move to other parts of the house – especially when it started getting cold. The house I grew up in always had (and still does) very stereotypical looking “house spiders” in all the windows. The types of spiders I’ve had to share my home with have varied greatly from place to place though.
![long body cellar spider up close long body cellar spider up close](https://i.redd.it/ec2ijsolom741.jpg)
I don’t think I’ve ever lived in a house that hasn’t had some kind of spider claiming it as its home as well. Most of them really are super beneficial – even the ones hanging about in the corners of my house! Outside is fine, but I really don’t like them in the house. I’ll be the first one to admit – spiders can be creepy.