House spiders have long adapted to life in human homes. Many species of these creatures, which are not uncommon in houses and apartments, are almost never found in natural conditions.
Most people are afraid of these arthropods, but there are also those who choose these creatures as pets for home keeping. Any species often found in residential areas is less dangerous than exotic ornamental arthropods that were imported from regions with warm climates.
Spiders in the house: is it dangerous?
Some people experience fear and discomfort if spiders appear, because... they don’t know for sure whether they bite or are dangerous to humans. In fact, most species of arthropods that settle in human homes are characterized by low aggressiveness, therefore, when a person approaches, they try to hide in a safe place. In addition, most arthropods living in houses and apartments are non-poisonous, i.e. the enzymes they produce in small quantities, when injected during a bite, cannot harm the human body.
If there are a lot of spiders in the house, whether this is good or bad is difficult to figure out. Arthropods living in apartments are predators, i.e. they hunt other insects. Thus, the benefits of spiders are great, because... they can destroy flies, bedbugs, moths and other pests. In addition, you don’t have to worry that the number of these arthropods will grow rapidly. How long these creatures live depends on the abundance of food and the species of these creatures. Their numbers are regulated by slow reproduction and low survival rate of young animals.
Reasons for appearance
To understand where spiders come from in an apartment, you need to assess the condition of the home. Arthropods can enter a room in the following ways:
- through open windows and doors;
- on outerwear;
- with garden tools;
- on flowers;
- from the attic;
- via sewer lines from the basement.
At the same time, it must be taken into account that in rooms where general cleaning is regularly carried out, these creatures are extremely rare.
To understand why there are a lot of spiders at home, you need to figure out what these creatures feed on in the apartment. Most of them are predators, so if there are too few insects in the room for them to feed on, the number of these creatures will be insignificant.
In addition, the reason why there are many spiders in the apartment may lie in favorable weather conditions. Human homes have a more stable microclimate than outside. The lack of wind helps the web last longer, so these creatures can expend less energy to produce it.
What causes spiders to appear?
Spiders can settle in your living space for several reasons:
- You are warm . In autumn, when it starts to get cold outside, spiders look for warm corners.
- It's very humid here . Most often, spiders live in bathrooms and kitchens, and this is no coincidence. These arthropods feel most comfortable in a humid environment.
- You have a lot of food . Spiders are predators; they feed on flies, midges and cockroaches. If you find a spider at home, it means there are insects hiding somewhere.
- Your place is dirty . In fact, the garbage is what causes flies and cockroaches to appear, and they are a tasty bait for spiders.
Photos and names of house spiders
To understand the degree of danger of a spider, you need to know its species. The characteristics and characteristics of all arthropods that often inhabit human homes should be considered.
Haymaker
The haymaker spider often lives in window frames and corners of apartments and houses. They can often be found in attics. These creatures have an oval body, reaching about 1 cm in length. This species is distinguished by long legs that are beige or brown in color. The body is gray-brown. Haymakers weave a chaotic web.
Their numbers in residential buildings increase in the fall. Haymakers are extremely shy, so if they are disturbed, they try to quickly hide. If life is threatened, the spider may bite. These creatures are non-poisonous and therefore do not pose a danger to humans.
Black house spider
Black spiders are often found in corners, on the ceiling and walls of apartments. The female of this species can reach 3 cm, while the males are 2 times smaller. They weave a tube-like web. The diet of black spiders includes not only flies, but also moths, butterflies, beetles and other insects that accidentally enter the living room. Living in a house, they rarely reproduce.
The lifespan of arthropods of this species is 2 years. Small spiders, hatching from eggs, are already similar in structure to adult individuals. The black house spider, despite its large size as an adult, does not pose a danger to humans. These arthropods bite only if they are in danger.
Hobo spider
Vagrants are small in size. They rarely grow to 1 cm in length. This species of arthropod has 8 pairs of legs. The hobo's shell is brown with black and beige patches. This house spider differs from its relatives in that it does not weave a web. This creature is constantly moving. During a hunt, it quickly attacks the prey, injects its poison and eats it. The venom released by this type of spider is safe for humans.
Jumper
It is relatively rare for jumpers to be found in apartments. In most cases, they are carried indoors on a person’s clothing. Jumpers have a special structure of their legs, thanks to which they move by jumping. In addition, this type of spider is able to quickly move across glass. The jumper, unlike other varieties, has good eyesight. It has 8 eyes arranged in 3 rows. These creatures are safe. They do not emit poison, because... consume only plant foods. The basis of their diet is acacia.
White house spider
A simple white spider is also common in the house. The body length of females of this species reaches 1.5 cm, and males are much smaller. These arthropods weave large webs. Their poison is not dangerous to humans. At the same time, white karakurts are found in the southern regions of Russia. They have thin legs and a thick spherical body. White karakurts are rarely found in a house or apartment, but it is impossible to exclude their entry into living quarters. The venom of these arthropods can cause allergic reactions and signs of intoxication.
Preparing ant bait
Mosquitoes in the bathroom
You shouldn’t be surprised here, because it’s not at all difficult for mosquitoes to get into an apartment, but to find a better habitat, and even more so. Walking around the apartment in the evening or at night, they immediately feel where they can eat and where they can spend the night, and therefore, during the season of successful activity of these reptiles, there may be plenty of them in the bathroom.
Mosquitoes are interested in darkness and humidity - a place in which to hide. If you turn on the light and see a mosquito and scare it away, it will immediately disappear and hide somewhere under the bathroom. Now this is his new home. The rest of the bloodsuckers will do the same, going out to hunt at night and waking them up with their hateful squeaks.
Midge in the bathroom
Small midges, which are unclear where they come from and where they disappear, appear in the bathroom if there is some unsanitary conditions. Again, the best period for midges is warm summer, when there may be pieces of fruit or vegetables left somewhere.
Many may deny that the bathroom is not a place for products at all, but believe me, according to standard social surveys, more than 85% of people wash products in the bathroom, so we believe that this issue has been settled. Next, you just have to watch how a hated swarm gathers over a small cherry or a piece of tomato.
Centipedes in the bath
Well, here we come to the most constant guests of the bathroom - centipedes. Below we will look at woodlice and silverfish, which are the first competitors for this title, but that will come later. For now, let's remember what centipedes look like. Nasty, frightening, biting, in short, just disgusting creatures that bring not only visual discomfort, but can also cause some health problems.
Depending on the type of centipede, it can be completely harmless, but it can also cause skin irritation just from the touch of its many legs, just like a caterpillar in the garden. It is very easy for centipedes to settle in the bathroom - just create the proper microclimate for them and start neglecting sanitary standards, and you will definitely meet them.
Woodlice in the bathroom
No less vile insects are inhabitants of humid environments, which easily find a home under various room objects, in seams and joints, behind furniture and in vents, where they have a great time.
Fast-moving, medium-sized insects are gray-gray pests that cause discomfort only by their appearance. A small, convex creature, it is quite difficult to remove from the bathroom, but if you try, then these guests will quickly leave your house.
Silverfish in the bathroom
Silverfish are insects with an elongated body and short legs, quickly moving through them, the insect creates enough speed to run away from you while you are looking for slippers to commit lynching. It is believed that silverfish in the bathroom can be dangerous, although no evidence has been found for this. But, nevertheless, you should not feel sorry for unpleasant insects; they must be exterminated in time.
If you look for a nest of insects in the bathroom, having noticed one or several individuals, then you will have to try hard, because the silverfish in the bathroom can live anywhere, like every insect described before.
Is a spider on the ceiling or in the bathroom dangerous?
Considering that it is extremely difficult to encounter a poisonous spider in your own home, the danger from such a neighborhood is small. At the same time, the presence of these arthropods in an apartment can negatively affect a person’s emotional well-being.
Folk signs
There are many folk superstitions regarding these creatures. It is believed that the appearance of an arthropod in the house promises good luck and the onset of a favorable period in business and personal life. Some people believe that if you see this arthropod in the morning, your day will be successful.
If the spider was met during the daytime, then soon the person will meet great love. At the same time, according to folk superstitions, if it hangs on the web above the table, it means you need to be as careful as possible in your affairs, because someone is planning intrigues. An arthropod falling on its head promises unexpected income.
If it appears on the wall in the bathroom, you should take steps to change your life. In addition, an arthropod climbing up a web promises good news. If it weaves a network over the bed, a person, according to popular belief, will face health problems or adultery.
Is it necessary to fight arthropods?
In houses, a lot of dust and insect remains always accumulate on the cobwebs. In addition, even small spiders in the house can cause negative feelings for most people. Thus, it is advisable to eliminate these creatures when they appear in the room.
Spider brain
Regardless of size, all spiders weave complex webs
. It turns out that this ability takes a lot of energy and requires a fairly developed and large brain. Research has shown that the smaller the spider, the larger its brain (in proportion to the rest of its body).
Where is a spider's brain located?
Some spiders have a brain so large that all other organs are forced to fit into its legs.
. In other words, these spiders become simply "walking brains."
How to get rid of house spiders?
Getting rid of spiders is not difficult. If a lot of these creatures appear in the room, you need to do a thorough cleaning. All cobwebs should be removed together with a broom. In addition, you need to thoroughly rinse all corners and nooks where arthropods can hide. Be sure to seal all cracks in windows and doors, clean out the attic, and remove trash from your living space.
Chemicals for spiders
These arthropods are extremely sensitive to chemical insecticides. The following drugs can be used:
- Butox 50.
- Diflofos.
- Neoron.
- Dobrokhim FOS, etc.
Before treatment, children and pets should be temporarily removed from the premises. Windows should be closed. After spraying the selected insecticide, you must leave the room for about 30 minutes. At the end of this period, the room should be well ventilated and thoroughly cleaned. Chemicals should be used when the number of these creatures is too large in the room, so there is a possibility that not all individuals will be eliminated during cleaning.
Folk remedies
Many folk remedies allow you to cope with arthropods living in houses. If there are a lot of spiders, you can place sticky traps on horizontal surfaces where they often move. You can use a vacuum cleaner to remove insect eggs and webs.
In order to eliminate arthropods, you can place chopped walnuts and horse chestnuts in the corners. Essential oils of eucalyptus, mint and tea tree will be useful in the fight against them. To prepare the solution, dissolve 20 drops of the selected essential oil in 500 ml of warm water. The resulting product should be used to treat all places where spiders were noticed.
Feeding spiders
Vegetarian spiders Spiders
are known to feed mainly on small insects, but there is one species - Kipling's bagheera
(lat.
Bagheera kiplingi
), whose diet consists exclusively of
plant foods
. This spider lives in Central America and is known as almost the only vegetarian spider.
This spider feeds on the buds and leaves of acacia trees and has no natural defenses against predators. By the way, some ants feed on the same plants and zealously protect their food sources, so spiders sometimes have to fight for food
. By deception, they steal the leaves one by one when there are no ants nearby.
What are they needed for in nature?
Arachnids are the most common species of animals; they live everywhere. Found in the northernmost regions, near glaciers, many species have inhabited deserts. Spiders were not too lazy to climb mountain peaks; they were found even on the approaches to Everest.
The species diversity of arachnids allows them to colonize different territories. They live in the soil cover, on trees and in grass, take over animal burrows, and make their way into a person’s house.
By their feeding method, spiders are classified as predators. They do not chase prey like cats, they weave webs and patiently wait for the food to end up in the web. When considering the benefits spiders bring to wildlife, we must not forget that they themselves serve as food for other animals.
The food chain created by nature makes spiders not only a predator, but also prey that is also hunted. Lizards, birds, wasps, and small mammals feed on arachnids. The extermination of spiders during cultivation of farmland causes significant harm to those for whom they serve as food.
Arachnids, like all predators, regulate the number of species they feed on. They are entomophagous (insect eaters), protecting plants from attack by pests and their excessive spread. According to some studies, spiders eat more insects than all other species combined.
Arachnids protect forests from the invasion of small pests, because humans only care about agricultural land. Hanging trap nets catch insects and significantly reduce their numbers.
The venom of the majority of arachnids is dangerous only for insects and serves to kill them. Poisonous species, dangerous to humans and animals, live in tropical zones.
