This spider has taken residence in a corner of one of the rooms, I’m not bothered by them but the web is getting a bit too big… can I just remove part of it to keep the size in check without causing harm to the spider?
I’m in the hospital and on many medications and I thought you were asking if you could remove part of the spider without harming the spider.
Hope you get well soon!
Might also have been a poorly phrased question on my part, since English is not my first language!
Thank you! Definitely not your fault. I’m just zonked with meds.
You’re a true spider bro
Spider has kept insect populations in check and I’m grateful. Plus, they’re cute
I was with you until that last sentence.
I don’t think it’s an issue to remove part of the web. I’ve got spiders outside that tend to keep blocking the entryway and I have to destroy parts that get in the way of the path. They’re usually back within a day or so.
For a more solid answer, the link below describes moving spiders entirely by relocating part of the web with the spider. I think trimming the web is going to be less stressful than that.
https://askentomologists.com/2015/10/11/how-do-i-relocate-insects-and-spiders/
Appreciate it! I guess, since it’s just a little trim around the edges, there shouldn’t be problems as you said! If they can survive a relocation they can probably live with a little less web! Thanks!
Unlike spiders, Daddy Longlegs don’t spin webs because they do not produce silk. Daddy Long Legs actually have only two eyes unlike spiders who have eight. Another difference is that Daddy Longlegs are not venomous. They do not have fangs or venom glands. - from Google.
Wait, I now have to research how they build their webs then, if not by spinning. Thanks for the trivia!
They prefer back and forth motion, shaking if you will, over a circular motion like stirring. Hence they don’t spin webs. They prefer them shaken.
“Wait, whaat…? That’s amaz-… wait a minute”
I am going to assume you have a cellar spider. Removing part of the web isn’t going to directly harm them. They don’t recycle their web so you aren’t even removing nutrients from them.
The only way it’s going to affect them is by reducing their chances of catching prey. Cellar spiders don’t have a sticky web and rather rely on prey brushing up against their web, then rushing there and killing it with a bite. So you are reducing the area they are covering.
They also usually just gradually increase the size of their web. So it’s unlikely it will try to rebuild everything you removed at once. Meaning it’s not going to waste too much energy.
Yes. The web isn’t a horcrux or anything for the spider. I can build new webs.
“intensely_human”
I can build new webs
Something you wanna tell us? 🤨 🕷️
I don’t know anything about daddy long legs, but I’d assume it’s okay as long as you don’t try and do it when it’s in the web.
If it needs a web to live its life then it must be able to account for damage. Whether that means it repairs your damage or it decides another location would be best, it should be able to accommodate.
Thanks! It’s a bit difficult to wait for them to move out, since, at least for what I can tell, they never leave the web. I always found the spider in the same spot lol right now they’re keeping around the middle, so I could trim the edges of the web without directly touching the spider, if that’s what you meant!
As long as you’re careful it should be okay. I’m sure it’ll scare the shit out of them, they may flee if you trim it, but again, worst case is they decide they need to make a new web elsewhere.
Too bad, I guess it was good real estate!
Daddy long legs aren’t spiders.
If it looks like a spider, and acts like a spider, and freaks me out like a spider, it’s close enough
In the UK what we call a daddy longlegs has wings and flies (a crane fly I think). Obviously a very widely used name for things with a small body and a bunch of long legs haha
Depends on who you ask. Pholcidae are also called daddy longlegs and are spiders.
That doesn’t look like my friend at all lol
This one here looks very much similar to my friend (thin and long body): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pholcidae
No idea why there’s multiple animals called all the same way though
