Spiders preparing to invade your home as mating season approaches
23 August 2022, 13:56
Spider sightings in homes across the United Kingdom are expected to rocket as we leave the hot summer months.
After a long summer of record-breaking heat, many people across Britain are ready for the cooler months to roll in and for Autumn to begin.
What these people don't know is that with the end of summer comes spider season, when the eight-legged creatures begin to venture inside our homes.
Usually, September marks the start of spider season and with only a few days left of August we are preparing for the invasion.
You'll generally see more spiders around your home from September and throughout the winter months as the male spiders leave their outdoor homes for a warmer environment to reproduce.
The male arachnids will roam homes in order to find a female to reproduce with.
Karl Curtis, Director of Reserves and Community Engagement at Warwickshire Wildlife Trust, said that often spiders are already living in your home, but that they become more obvious in the winter months because they're leaving their hiding places.
"In theory, common species like the giant house spider are in our homes all year round", he told Coventry Live: "Staying in their webs and doing us all a favour by devouring flies and other insects that might be seen as a pest in our homes."
He continues: "It is just that autumn is the time of year the males look for a mate and so start to roam.
"Of course, spiders are not everyone’s favourite invertebrate but they will not or do not want to harm humans and are just ensuring that we have a future generation of free pest controllers in our homes and gardens."
There are 650 species of spider in the UK, but Karl said that the most common ones we will see during spider season will be the giant house spider and the cellar spider, also known as a 'daddy longlegs'."
If you're not a fan of the creatures, there are many natural ways you can deter the arachnids from your home without harming them:
- Use a spider catcher to remove them from your home and return them outside
- Spray peppermint oil around the home to deter them
- Clean your house to minimise the places the spiders can settle
- Use citrus smells around the house when cleaning
- Move your bins, check your fruit bowl, don't leave food out
- Buy cinnamon sticks or cinnamon scented candles
- Spray white wine vinegar in the corners of your house
- Seal cracks in the exterior of your house
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