There are many myths surrounding spiders, and all of them are just that: myths. According to the Merriam Webster dictionary, a myth is: an idea or story that is believed by many people but that is not true. So with that in mind, let’s get started. :)
1.) “Arachnid” is just a fancy name for spider.
Nope. Seriously, it isn’t. There are many different types of arachnids, which include scorpions, mites and ticks, harvestmen, pseudoscorpions, whipscorpions, solpugids, and the familiar spider. Each of them have 4 pairs of legs, and on a typical individual that makes 8 legs total. However, legs can sometimes be lost, so if it has 7 legs, don’t worry, it’s still an arachnid. ;)
2.) The daddy-longlegs has the world’s worst venom, but it can’t bite you.
I’ve actually had someone tell this to me in real life, and for a while I believed it, but depending on your geography, “daddy-longlegs” can mean 3 different critters: harvestmen, cellar spiders (Pholcidae), and crane flies. #1 and #3 have no venom at all, but #2 does. “Ah-ha! Now she’s getting to the part where she has to admit they do have deadly venom,” you might be squealing (consciously or unconsciously) inside. Well, they do have venom, but it’s far from deadly or even the zone where it would be considered “bad.”
3.) You unwittingly swallow an average of four live spiders in your sleep each year.
Just for one moment, think about the odds of this happening. Go on, I’ll wait. Thought about it enough? Good. Pretty unlikely, huh? Why would a spider even be near your mouth while you sleep? “Well, maybe they drink from your eye or mouth while you sleep,” you might say. Just trust me when I say that spiders would rather drink from a stagnant puddle of dirty water under your house than crawl up the bed leg, across the sheets, and onto your face just for a drink. They’re terrified of you!
4.) You are never more than 3 feet from a spider.
Just think about this one as well. How complex would a mathematical equation have to be to figure this one out? It’s not possible, to say the least. It also depends on where you’re sitting (or standing,) right now. If you’re in the woods or in your yard, there are probably spiders closer to you than 3 feet, unless your yard is doused with fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides. If you’re in a parking lot or an empty, freshly-cleaned room, the nearest spider could be 10 feet away or more. There’s really no way to tell. :)
5.) Spiders in the home are dangerous.
A good thing to remember is that spiders are more scared of you than you are of them, and will generally revert to fleeing instead of biting. They are hardwired to do so, because they know that the odds are not in their favor if they bite. Why? Because spiders that bite usually end up smushed, that’s why. It’s a sad fact of life if you’re a spider. ;) Also, most of the spiders in the world are not considered medically significant, and even if they are, they are no more intent on biting you than other spiders. Their “flight” response greatly outweighs their “fight” (in this case “bite”) response.
I hope this post shed some light on a few of the most common spider myths out there, and causes you to think a little differently about these fascinating eight-legged creatures. :)