Cellar Spiders in Virginia
Cellar spiders are inconspicuous, harmless, fragile spiders with extremely long, thin legs. They are sometimes referred to as daddy longlegs spiders, which are quite different and unrelated. Some species of cellar spiders are very common in homes, especially in garages, basements, and cellars, hence the common name. These spiders can be seen in corners and ceilings, usually hanging belly-up. Cellar spiders are the natural enemy of large house spiders that live in homes, and will also feed on flies, bees, wasps, and even other cellar spiders when food is scarce.
Cellar Spider Habitat
In nature, cellar spiders usually live in the openings of caves, or crevices in cliffs, and other protected places. Indoors, are often found in damp cellars, basements, crawl spaces, garages, and dark, quiet places. Cellar spiders build irregular messy webs and are highly sensitive to vibrations and will close in on an unsuspecting insect rapidly if it happens to wander into its web. Male and female cellar spiders may be found in climate-controlled structures year-round.
Cellar Spider Behaviors, Threats, or Dangers
Although cellar spiders do have venom, they aren’t a cause for concern. Historically, cellar spiders are not known to bite humans and, therefore, do not pose a health threat. Cellar spiders are considered nuisance pests, due to the large amounts of webbing they produce. Many species of spiders consume their old web before making a new one, but cellar spiders do not. They continuously add to it, creating large amounts of webbing which becomes a nuisance to remove and an eyesore in homes and commercial buildings.
If you are dealing with cellar spider problems in your home, contact your local spider exterminators.
