Harvestman

The Harvestman is an arachnid related to spiders and scorpions.

 

They are easily recognised by their small body and very long, thin legs.



There are about 25 species in the UK and over 6,650 species worldwide.
Unlike spiders they do not spin silk or produce venom.
Some are predators, catching small invertebrates with the hooks on the ends of their legs.
Others are omnivorous and will also eat fruit and fungi.

Spot the Spider

If it hadn't moved I would never have noticed it.
Typical Harvestman, tiny body and enormous legs:



This one was most uncooperative. It would not stay still so I could get some decent photos to stack.

The Other Daddy Longlegs

Another creature which has very long legs compared with the size of its body is the Harvestman. Often called a spider but is in fact a close relative of the spiders. Spiders have two segments to the body but all the sections of a Harvestman are fused into one. Also the Harvestman has no venom glands or silk glands. They do not spin webs.

This beauty was blending in well with the cracks on a wooden door:





With a body just 7mm long the outstretched legs measured a maximum distance of 100mm.
A composite made with six hand held focus stacked photos:



As always Zerene Stacker was used to produce the finished result.

Harvestman

Almost perfectly camouflaged on the back door to the garage was this Harvestman. At first glance it looks like a spider but unlike spiders it only has one main body section and only one pair of eyes:





With its tiny body and l-o-n-g legs it is sometimes know as 'daddy longlegs' or 'granddaddy longlegs'. They do not produce poison and their diet includes small insects, all kinds of plant life and fungi.