Randy spiders are “flying” into our homes through open windows in search of a female.
Experts told this week how a billion arachnids were heading into properties across the nation for mating season.
And now one has warned that the critters can “fly”, or parachute through the air, so even people in high rises aren’t spared.
READ MORE: Bloke tricked town into thinking Bigfoot lived there and kept secret for 50 years
Chris Davis, from Cleankill Pest Control, said: “It is incredibly hard if not impossible to stop spiders from coming into your home. At this time of year, male spiders are in search of females, so are making their way into peoples’ homes to find a mate.
“What most people don’t know is that spiders can ‘fly’. They can easily get to around 40ft high by ‘ballooning’, so even people in tower blocks aren’t immune.”
Although spiders don’t actually ‘fly’ in the traditional sense, they can travel huge distances by ‘parachuting’ in the air.
The phenomenon, called ‘ballooning’ or ‘kiting’, is when a spider launches itself from somewhere a few feet off the ground – like a wall, shed or tree – and takes to the air.
As they ‘fly’ they fire out silken threads – normally used to make webs – which catch wind thermals, allowing the spiders to float through the air – and into our homes through open windows.
Airborne spiders can travel from anywhere from a few feet to hundreds of miles, depending on the wind and air currents.
Chris added that ‘ballooning’ spiders were often caught in suction traps placed ‘high up’.
They are used to catch aphids to measure the number of pests in a particular area – proving that they are ‘regular flyers’.
Arachnophobe Lily Saunders, 31, of Ely, Cambs, said she was ‘horrified’ that spiders could fly into her sixth-storey flat.
The dance teacher said: “It’s bad enough having to worry about spiders coming up through the sinkhole or cracks in the walls, but I really, really don’t like it that they can fly into my flat.
“If you’d asked me what my worst nightmare was last week I would have said ‘flying spiders’ – and now my nightmare turns out to be true.”
To get more stories from the Daily Star delivered straight to your inbox, sign up to one of our free newsletters here.
Source: Read Full Article