Daddy Longlegs the Harvestmen

/in /by

Daddy longlegs also go by the names harvestmen or opilionids. They have one body segment, two eyes, eight legs used to crawl, smell and taste. These original daddies’ are not spiders or even insects and can live as long as two years. They aren’t venomous and don’t create silk webs. Although there is an urban legend out there that they are the most poisonous spiders in the world. Similar to crabs, the harvestmen mouthparts (their incisors are too small to pierce human skin) hold their prey while eating them. Like a skunk, their only protection is a strong odor they release that deters most predators. Sometimes they hang out in large clumps; to maintain high humidity, to lower their individual chances of being eaten or to bolster their chemical defenses. I have not mentioned the word “pest” so far as these guys are beneficial predators or scavengers, so if their presence is bothersome, just sweep them outside.

gogreenpestcontrol.ca Ladner Tsawwassen Delta B.C. Randy Bilesky

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/daddy-longlegs-harvestmen-randy-bilesky?published=t

http://www.delta-optimist.com/opinion/blogs/blog-daddy-longlegs-the-harvestmen-1.13388075