In Australia, there are multiple species of spider that can kill you with one bite… It’s no wonder they make some people nervous…
If you are one of the many people that find spiders disturbing you may take solace in some of the myths we are about to debunk…
Myth 1: On average humans swallow 7 spiders per year while sleeping.
This myth has been around for as long as we can remember!
It seems that the amount of spiders consumed during your sleep changes depending on where you are located… Sometimes it’s four spiders a year sometimes it’s eight…
The truth however is closer to zero.
Think about it logically for a second… Why on Earth would a spider be anywhere near your mouth while you sleep.
To a spider you a the biggest most terrifying giant in it’s world and there is no reason for it to be anywhere near your mouth.
Even if you sleep with your mouth wide open at night ( let’s face it, most of us don’t ) you would be very unlucky to have a spider accidentally fall into your mouth. Spiders are generally pretty good at NOT falling off things…
Scientific American actually chipped in on this subject saying:
“This claim is highly implausible from a biological standpoint. A slumbering person breathes, has a beating heart and perhaps snores — all of which create vibrations that warn spiders of danger. Vibrations are a big slice of a spiders’ sensory universe, A sleeping person is not something a spider would willingly approach.”
Along with this insight from Scientific American, Rumor debunking website snopes have written that this rumor was actually started as an example of the absurd things people will believe simply because they came across it on the internet…
Myth 2: Daddy Long Legs are venomous:
Rumor has it that the Daddy Long Legs spider has enough venom to kill multiple people but their jaws don’t open wide enough to bite. This is another absurd myth that seems to have originated from the internet…
Daddy long legs are arachnids just like spiders and scorpions but they aren’t actually spiders. They differ because unlike spiders they only have two eyes, a segmented abdomen and do not produce venom.
They tend to prey on vegetation and rotting food… Gross!
Myth 3: You are never further than three feet from a spider.
This rumor can get a little pedantic…
If you are out in the bush then sure maybe you’re within a few feet of a spider. But if you’re in a hospital, on top of a skyscraper or on an airplane you will be hard pressed to find a spider nearby. It just depends on where you are.
Myth 4: Arachnid means spiders:
We briefly touched on this in the daddy long legs myth. Generally when you hear the term arachnid your mind usually jumps to spiders.
Many people don’t realise spiders are just one member of the arachnid family.
Scorpions, harvest-men and solpugids to name a few, are all members of the arachnid family as are mites and ticks.
Myth 5: Spiders hold their breath when sprayed:
OK, even we’ll admit this one was pretty new to us…
This one is relatively easy to debunk as spiders don’t actually “breathe” like we do.
There is no pumping of air in and out of a spiders lungs. Respiration (like most insects and arachnids) is done through a process called passive diffusion.
Spiders respiratory organs are book lungs where air flows through tubes into hollow air plates surrounded by the spiders blood. Oxygen and carbon dioxide pass through these thin plates via diffusion.
So there is no breath as such to be held. Just constant airflow.
So there you have it. 5 common spider myths that aren’t actually true.
If you’ve heard of other myths you would like to have debunked let us know in the comments and we’ll find out if they’re true or not.