Hello readers! I am Daddy Long Legs, a species of spider. Wait, don’t be afraid of me, I will not bite you because my fangs are not long enough to bite a human. Many times people are confused about spiders and their nature. Today, I am here to answer your question: Are Daddy Long Legs Venomous or not? 

Are Daddy Long Legs Venomous? 

Spiders secrete venom from their deadly fangs. These fangs can inject venom into the body of the prey. Therefore Daddy Long Legs are non-venomous. Most spiders have spinnerets that extrude silk from their body, which assist in making a web. It is then used to catch prey and eat them. Spiders also have six to eight pairs of eyes. 

Moreover, in a huge class of Arachnids, various spider species don’t inject venom due to the absence of spinnerets. Therefore they are non-venomous. The best example of a non-venomous spider is Daddy Long Leg. This species is also known as Harvestmen. This species falls under Kingdom Animalia, phylum Arthropoda, class Arachnida, and belongs to the order Opiliones. Opiliones is the Arachnid class which also includes spiders, scorpions, and mites.

Are Daddy Long Legs Venomous?

Unlike other spiders, Harvestmen are non-venomous. They don’t have many eye pairs – hence, they rely only on one pair of eyes. Most surprisingly, they don’t secrete silk from spinnerets, as the spinner gland is absent in their body. Therefore they are sneaky hunters, who hunt their prey with claw-like feeding appendages, near their mouths known as chelicerae. In short, Harvestmen are harmless! Now, you can answer the question: Are Daddy Long legs venomous or not, right?

Can a Daddy Long Legs bite kill you?

The natural habitat of Daddy Long Legs is under the logs and rocks. They mostly prefer a moist habitat. However, these species are also found in deserts. Human encounters with Daddy Long Legs are a rare event because these spider species prefer to live away from people. Mostly, in moist habitats. 

Another reason for rare encounters with humans and an interesting fact is that their fangs are too small to penetrate human skin. Therefore, they do not bite humans.

Daddy Long Legs Bite Symptoms

Generally, Daddy Long Legs don’t bite humans. They are harmless to humans. But if they do, then you may feel a slight tingling sensation. Additional symptoms may include hives, itchiness, etc. for around a week or so. It’s advisable to seek medical consultation if bitten.

Can you keep Daddy Long Legs as pets?

Yes absolutely. Because of their harmless nature, you can keep them as pets. Your guest may ask you: Are Daddy Long Legs Venomous or not and whether they can play with it or not? You can let them play with your pet spider without any concern. However, you can warn them that this spider may bite and can cause negligible tingling sensations under the bitten skin.

What do Daddy Long Legs eat?

Daddy Long Legs are omnivorous. They eat different organic materials present in the ecosystem. They eat other spiders, earthworms, and small insects. 

They also function as scavengers because they feed on dead insects, decaying plant materials, eggs of insects, and fecal material. These spiders have an important role in the ecosystem. These species assist in cleaning up the dug and the dead things of nature. Aphids and insects are one of the favorite foods of these spiders.

Do Daddy Long Legs eat roaches?

Daddy Long Legs mainly feed on decaying and dead material. Their primary diet is detritus and other decomposing material. In addition, these spiders also prey on small insects. However, they do not prefer to eat live insects like cockroaches. On the other hand, they are opportunistic scavengers. Hence, they might scavenge the dead roaches.

Daddy Long Legs vs Brown Recluse Spider

Daddy Long Legs lives in a moist habitat. On the other hand, Brown recluse spiders enjoy staying in dry habitats such as piles of wood. The most important difference between both species is that Brown recluse spiders can bite humans. They can cause physical harm to humans. 

However, Daddy Long Legs are harmless to humans and have significant importance in pest control. Interestingly, both the species have the same-sized fangs. However, the bite of Brown recluse spiders can destroy the skin and cause severe abrasion. This may lead to necrosis. In contrast, the bite of Daddy Long Legs might give a tingling sensation which is harmless to humans.

Daddy Long Legs Vs Cellar Spider

Both Daddy Long Legs and Cellar spiders belong to the same family of the Pholcidae of order Araneae. Moreover, both belong to the Kingdom Animalia, phylum Arthropoda, and class Arachnida. Although they are part of the same family and have long legs and small bodies, there are some distinctive differences between them. Here are the differences listed below to identify and differentiate between both species.

Body Shape

Daddy Long Legs have a round body, which is not divided into sections. On the other hand, the cellar spiders are divided into two body sections – a head (or thorax) and an abdomen.

Mode of Nutrition

Daddy Long Legs are detritus, scavengers, and predators. In contrast, the Cellar Spider loves to eat ants as well as other small spider species. Apart from these distinctive differences, both the spiders are found in basements, garages, crawl spaces, under the rocks, and inside the caves. 

Daddy Long Legs Spiritual Meaning

There is folklore that suggests the Daddy Long Leg spider has a very important spiritual significance. For example, there was a myth in 1600s Essex, England, that each Daddy Long Legs spider had a sword to assist farmers in harvesting crops. 

Additionally, there was a popular myth which stated that killing a “Daddy Long Leg” might bring bad luck in your life! According to an old French peasant legend, if you see a Daddy Long Legs in the late afternoon, it is a good omen, predicting good luck, feelings of joy, and hope in your life.

Daddy Long Legs might also convey a universal lesson in clarity and communication. It might indicate that you need to be more specific about what you want and make sure your words reflect that.

Conclusion

In conclusion, you can understand that the Daddy Long Legs, which are also known as Harvestmen spiders, are unique spiders with distinctive features. 

The Daddy Long Legs, also known as Harvestmen spiders, are intriguing creatures with several unique characteristics. Although they don’t have a friendly appearance, they don’t harm humans and perform important tasks of pest control in our environment. 

Most importantly, when someone asks: Are Daddy Long Legs Venomous? You can say that: No, they are non-venomous and not harmful to humans. It is because these spiders lack long enough fangs to protrude and secrete the venom into the human skin. Additionally, these species lack the special glands which produce venom. That is to say, they can neither produce venom nor bite humans such that they can harm us. However, warn someone of the biting symptoms before they play with this spider species. Tell them that if it bites you, you may feel some tingling below the skin but do not worry, it won’t kill you!

Overall, Daddy Long Legs are an interesting spider species that plays an important role in both our ecosystem as well as the spiritual world. These species remind us of the complexities of the natural world and the broad picture of human beliefs and folklore.