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The Spider Myths Site
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Myths, Misconceptions, and Superstitions About Spiders

Rod Crawford, Curator of Arachnids, Burke Museum

As the only local spider specialist in a large metropolitan area, I get many inquiries about spiders from the general public. Since I'm mentioned on the Internet as a spider specialist, some of the public inquiries come from distant places. I also lecture on spiders to both adult and elementary-school audiences, and these audiences always have questions and comments; as do casual acquaintances when they first learn that I work with spiders.

The concerns voiced by these people originate from a widespread and surprisingly uniform set of assumptions and "general knowledge" about spiders. And with very few exceptions, all of this widespread information about spiders is false!

I don't really expect that this document, by itself, will make much headway against the flood of spider misinformation. However, I hope that those curious about spiders who find their way to the Burke Museum web site will absorb enough of the information here to ask me some new questions instead of the same old ones. I can hope, can't I?

Anyone with suggestions for improvements or additions to this document, or questions about information sources, should contact the author, tiso@u.washington.edu. But if you hope to show that any of the following myths is actually true, please be prepared with verifiable evidence including actual specimens...

Opinions expressed here are not necessarily endorsed by the Burke Museum or the University of Washington, but are entirely my own, founded on 34 years experience working with spiders and misinformed humans. Note also that I use "myth" here as a convenient catchall term for any kind of widely believed misinformation about spiders.

Notice to international readers:
The myths dealt with in this document are mainly North American. Some of the spider myths of other continents may differ. Older myths and legends not widely believed by present-day people are omitted: examples would be the Greek myth of Arachne or the West African stories of Anansi.

Myths are listed below by category.
Every one of the statements below is false!
Click each one to find out why.

General Fallacies

• Spiders are insects.
• "Arachnid" is just a fancy name for spider.
• You can always tell a spider because it has eight legs.
• All spiders make webs.
• The orb web (round or "geometric" web) is a "normal" spider web.
• A "daddy-longlegs" is a kind of spider.
• Most spiders could not bite humans because their fangs are too small.
• Any spider species can be found anywhere.
• All spiders are male.
• Spiders are most numerous in late summer.
• Spiders "suck the juices" of their prey, and do not literally eat it.

Myths about Identifying Spiders

• Spiders are easy to identify.
• Spider species are distinguished and identified by "markings."
• The size of spiders should be described in terms of coins.
• A photo that "looks just like" your spider identifies it.
• Physicians, exterminators, and entomologists can identify spiders.
• Spider specimens can be mailed with a letter in a common envelope.
• The spider you found has to be a species you've already heard of.
• "Since I can't tell what this spider is, it must be new and probably dangerous."
• One specimen is enough of a sample to tell what spiders live in a house.

House Spider Myths

• Spiders come into houses in the fall to get out of the cold.
• House spiders should be put "back outside."
• Spiders in bathtubs or sinks came up through the drains from sewers.
• "Those large, hairy spiders I find in my house are wolf spiders."
• Spiders in the home are a danger to children and pets.

Just Plain Weird Stories

• The daddy-longlegs has the world's worst venom, but it can't bite you.
• Near East "camel spiders" anaesthetize sleeping humans and eat their flesh.
• "Camel spiders" in Iraq are a foot long, lay eggs under camels' skin, & run 25 miles/hour screaming like a banshee.
• A potted cactus in someone's home exploded and scattered baby tarantulas!
• A deadly, exotic spider lurks under airport and airplane toilet seats.
• A gigantic, rare, endangered and (of course) deadly spider lives in tunnels under Windsor Castle.
• You swallow an average of four live spiders in your sleep each year.
• Spiders drink moisture from the mouths or lips of sleeping humans.
• When black widow spiders mate, the female always kills and eats the male.
• Spider eggs may turn up in human hairstyles or in bubble gum.
• Baby spiders can hatch out of spider bite wounds.
• Certain fruits or nuts can be used to repel spiders.
• Jumping tarantulas, ten-legged spiders, poisonous spider urine, and more!

Myths about "Dangerous" Spiders

• "A spider bit me while I was asleep." (No, I didn't see it, but...)
• "How could insects be biting me? I see only spiders in the house!"
• You can always tell a spider bite because a spider leaves 2 punctures.
• Some spiders are poisonous and others are not.
• Tarantulas are dangerous or deadly to humans.
• Some spiders are deadly.
• But there are really deadly spiders in Australia and Brazil.
• "The dreaded Brown Recluse spider has bitten people in my area!"
• You can identify "brown recluse" spiders by a violin shape.
• You'll know a "hobo spider" by chevrons, "boxing gloves," or funnel webs.
• Hobo spiders are aggressive.
• Doctors can always tell what spider bit you from the bite alone.
• Spiders carry germs on their fangs that can cause infection.
• People have lost arms and legs because of spider bites.
• Spider "infestations" should be controlled with pesticides.

Let us repeat...
Every one of the above statements is false!
Click each one to find out why.

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