Cellar Spider

Category:

Actual Size: ¼” not including long thin legs

Characteristics: Pale yellow to grey or light brown, with very long and thin legs.

Legs: 8

Habitat: Builds messy and irregular-shaped webs in dark or quiet areas, such as in basements, crawlspaces, or garages.

Habits:

  • Often mistakenly referred to as daddy longlegs or harvestmen.
  • Builds irregular-shaped webs in corners and ceilings, where they typically hang belly-up.
  • Prey on insects and house spiders.

Cellar Spiders in the Pacific Northwest

Cellar spiders have extremely long and spindly legs, which can make them look tall and frightening. However, these spiders are very fragile and harmless, and they are not known to bite humans. Instead, cellar spiders eat small insects such as ants, cockroaches, flies, and mosquitoes. These spiders may also consume other arachnids, and they are natural enemies to large house spiders. Cellar spiders are also drawn to quiet and dark areas, so they are frequently found in basements, garages, and cellars. After building a web – typically in a corner or ceiling – these spiders will hang belly-up waiting for prey.

Cellar Spider Habitat

Cellar spiders prefer to live in dark, quiet, and low-trafficked areas. Outdoors, these spiders are drawn to caves, crevices, and other protected areas. However, cellar spiders are very common household pests and frequently take up residence in basements, crawlspaces, garages, and other similar areas. Once they find a suitable habitat, these spiders build messy webs with irregular shapes, which they use to sense prey. Since cellar spiders are highly sensitive to vibrations, they can locate unsuspecting insects quickly using their extensive webs.

Cellar Spider Behaviors, Threats, or Dangers

Though cellar spiders have venom, they are not known to bite humans and do not pose a health risk. However, these spiders often leave behind large amounts of webbing. Though most spiders consume their old web before spinning a new one, cellar spiders do not – instead, they continuously add to the structure, which can lead to lots of messy webs throughout the home. If you are dealing with cellar spiders in your home, your local spider exterminators can help you get rid of these pests quickly.