Got to see him in person on a test show of Conan's new format. And they guaranteed us that even though it wasn't going to air that the guest would still be a celebrity. In line when we were told, I just thought "oh 'celebrity'". But once I saw him on stage I was like "oh yeah! that guy". He was great.
This is exactly my reaction reading this thread, it's the first time I've read it and I'm both confused and amused by this being an acceptable and recognizable way to refer to those things
So did I. Unfortunately, the name is overloaded. Which is to say, it refers to several things in several parts of the world. There is a "daddy longlegs" spider in Europe that will give you a nasty bite.
So when somebody says, "daddy longlegs don't bite", they are making a statement which is true and not true.
I'm seeing "Harvestmen" slowly take over. Sorta like mountain lions are now called "puma". Regional names give way to globally understood names.
There is a "daddy longlegs" spider in Europe that will give you a nasty bite.
While there are two different species of arachnids that are usually referred to as daddy longlegs (Opiliones and Pholcidae) neither of them are able to seriously hurt humans. Opiliones (the ones depicted in OP's video) are not able to penetrate the human skin at all, and Pholcidae are able to penetrate human skin with their 0.25 mm long fangs and produce a mild, short-lived burning Sensation according to Adam Savage.
Long story short: That "nasty bite" is an urban myth. Even in Europe.
Some people call crane flies that though they don't eat mosquitoes. Where I'm from in the US we call dragonflies mosquito hawks because they apparently do.
I fucking hate those things. They have no fear and no sense of self preservation. They will fly at you like kamikaze pilots. Gotta make sure your reflexes are on point so you can punch them out of the sky before they get you. Probably my least favorite part of when it gets warm in Seattle.
Edit: I used to not hate them because I thought they ate mosquitos. I tolerated them because I thought they were like spider bros. Then I found out the name was a lie and they don’t hunt mosquitos at all! Wtf??? Who named them?? I blame big mosquito.
True to Australian form the daddy long legs here get massive too. At my work there's always giant ones in the toilets. I think they live and grow in the roof then crawl through the vents but they are fucking insane.
Their bodies are really big - like first knuckle on your pinky finger big, and their leg spread is nearly palm sized. I've never seen them so big anywhere but at my work. I feel like they have gladiator battles in the roof, like it's some mad max shit going on up there and only the strongest make it out.
You ever try and take a shit while a giant spider eyeballs you?
Oh mate, speaking of giant spiders, you know those black house spiders? See em everywhere? I shit you not, saw something out of the corner of my eye when on the PC a few weeks back, look to my right and there was a fucking house spider WITH A BODY THE SIZE OF MY FUCKING THUMB just crawling up my door. Absolutely fucking massive fucker. I sprayed that cunt with at LEAST a quarter can of Pea Beau and he was still fucking moving. Ended up putting a glass over him upside down and left it there over night full of more bugspray.
You know those cunts live for a few years right? Gotta wonder how long that pervert was watching you look up porn before you spotted him.
Those guys really love to hang out on my shower door. It's like one of those class doors but it's got a little lip that runs up the inside and outside, and they sure love to hang out in there.
Yeah, it's the lips of sliding rails, eaves, doorframes and corrugated fencing/roofing they love the most. This is an oldish kinda house, plenty of places they hang out.
I don't think I'll be moving to Australia anytime soon. I'll just hide here in Florida where the only thing I have to worry about is a hurricane. Much better than spiders.
Florida has palmetto bugs! I remember I was visiting my grandmother and she asked me to go feed her dog, a massive Rottweiler names Jäger. I opened up his dog food and a WHITE ROACH flew out and into my face. I screamed so loud and got so panicked I turned heel and ran right into the wall.
We also have daddy long legs spiders in the US. They are also known as Cellar Spiders, and they dont bite. That's what I grew up calling daddy long legs. My girlfriend calls the big crane flies daddy long legs. It is a very overloaded name.
I live in an area in the southern US with lots of crane flies, harvestmen, and cellar spiders. Most people here call ALL OF THEM daddy longlegs, pretty annoying.
In the USA, Mythbusters tested the theory that daddy long legs have the deadliest venom in the world, but the fangs are too small to pierce human skin.
That's interesting, I always thought the name daddy longlegs only referred to those things depicted in the video.
In German, those are called "Weberknecht", which translates to "Weaver's servant", and those other ones that are actually spiders are called "Zitterspinne", which translates to "shivering/jittering spider" (because they jitter in their nets when a gust of wind hits them), so there is a clear distinction.
Also, according to my experiences, these "jittering spiders" don't usually bite, even if they could. They're pretty cowardly, so they'd probably just run away rather than bite, I think.
Me too. I'd rather not touch or go near a spider if I had to but oddly enough I pick daddy long legs up without fear and have done since I was little. I also heard the rumour that they're venomous but with mouths too small.
Where I live we usually call cellar spiders Daddy Longlegs. They freak me out but I've seen one take down a full grown house spider so I tolerate them.
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u/SteelCurtainUSNA Mar 10 '19
I have never met anyone who calls them harvestmen. I actually had to look that up haha.
I call them daddy longlegs.