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CELLAR I DADDYLONG LEGS SPIDERS
COMMON NAME: Cellar or daddy long legs spiders
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Various
CLASS / ORDER / FAMILY: Arachnida / Araneae / Pholcidae
METAMORPHOSIS: Simple
INTRODUCTION. Their common name “cellar” comes from these spiders being commonly found in dark and damp places such as cellars, basements, crawl spaces, and the name of daddy longlegs from their very long, thin legs which give them an appearance similar to harvestmen/daddylonglegs Cellar spiders are nuisance pests, probably more because of their webs than the spider itself. Over 20 species are found in the United States and Canada.
RECOGNITION. The adult body length ranges from about 1/16-5/16”; the cephalothorax and abdomen are connected by a tiny waist (called pedicel) but appear as a small body with very long, thin legs. The color is usually a pale yellowish to light brown or gray. The spider has 8 eyes, and some species have 6, usually with 2 widely spaced groups of 3 eyes that are closely-spaced. Each and 2 eyes in between. The chelicerae (fangs) are fused at the base, and the cheliceral claw is short and opposed (closes to the opposite) by a short tooth like projection of the basal segment. The abdomen is either globose or elongate in shape and the tarsi are with 3 claws each.
SIMILAR GROUPS. (1) Harvestmen/Daddylonglegs (order Opiliones, family Phalangiidae) with the cephalothorax and abdomen broadly connected giving the appearance of a singular oval body, one pair of ocelli, and the tarsi with 1 claw each.
REPRESENTATIVE SPECIES.
1. Long-bodied cellar spider, Pholcus phalangioides (Fuesslin). The adult female body length is about 1/4-5/16” long with the front legs about 1 3/4-almost 2” long and the male body length is about 1/4" and has 8 eyes in 2 lateral groups of 3 each with 2 smaller eyes in between. The abdomen is elongate and cylindrical, being about 3 times longer than wide. This spider is found worldwide.
2. Short-bodied cellar spider, Sphermophora meridionalis Hentz. The adult female body length is about 1/16" with its front legs being about 5/16" long and the male body length is about 1/16" with the front legs being about 3/8" long with the cephalothorax being pale yellow with 2 light gray spots. The abdomen is pale yellow and it has 6 eyes in 2 lateral groups of 3 each. The abdomen is globose. This spider is found in the eastern United States.
BIOLOGY. The long-bodied female cellar spider may produce up to 3 egg sacs containing up to 60 eggs each. The sacs are very thin such that the cluster of eggs shows through. This gives the appearance of an un-ripened blackberry. The female usually carries the egg sac between her chelicerae (claws) until they hatch. The emerging spiderlings often cling to their mother for a short time. There are 5 molts before maturity is reached, and this usually requires about 1 year. Adults typically live about 2 years.
The short-bodied female cellar spider produces a similar egg sac containing up to 27 eggs each. She also carries it in her chelicerae.
HABITS. Cellar spiders construct loose, very irregular webs in corners. The garage is a favorite place for this spider. They hang upside down on the underside of the web. The webs are never cleaned but instead new web is continually added. This habit can result in extensive webbing in a very short time.
Webs are commonly found in dark and damp places such as cellars, basements, and crawl spaces. They can also be found in the corners of garages, sheds, barns, and warehouses, on eaves, windows, and ceilings, and in closets, sink cabinets, and bathtraps. This spider can be found in commercial buildings and warehouses and these spiders tend to be in corners near doors which are left open. Remember that open doors allow many flying insects to enter which means more food.
Cellar spiders seem to do better in areas with higher relative humidities (RH). The higher RH may be due to an older construction, improperly vented crawl spaces, excessive ground moisture, improperly sealed basement walls, leaking/sweating plumbing pipes, leaky flashing, roof problems, etc. This increased RH attracts and helps support insects used for prey.
When disturbed on its web, the long-legged cellar spider has the habit of rapidly shaking its body in a rotary movement. This causes the web to vibrate enough to blur both spider and web, making the spider seem to disappear. If this disturbance is caused by an insect prey, this vibration helps to further entangle the prey. If disturbed too much, the spider will retreat to a corner or drop from the web to escape.
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