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Blog: Late summer - spider season

It would seem that we are experiencing one of the worst spider seasons that we have seen in years.
spider

It would seem that we are experiencing one of the worst spider seasons that we have seen in years. People ask me "why are there so many more spiders this year than usual," something I've heard every year for the past 12 years! In reality, low moisture availability makes late summer a much worse time for spiders than autumn (October-December) and spring; in fact, winter is even better than summer for spiders. But, spider season has arrived early this year. Our eight-legged friends often appear to become more frequent and vast in size as summer turns to fall. But this year we are seeing a bumper crop of spiders invade our homes ahead of time. I’m not sure which is worst, the spider webs that you run into or the spiders that stare you down as you approach them suspended in the air? So, what is spider season? Spider season has become the commonly used term beginning of September, when large house spiders are far more visible around Delta homes. This is because male spiders, after a summer of gobbling moths, flies, mosquitoes and other creepy crawlers, become sexually mature and start making their way indoors in search of a mate. Large house spiders are already being spotted frequently around people’s homes, which is unusual for mid- September. It all comes down to the hot dry smoky summer we’ve had. The warmer weather has delivered the perfect circumstances for spiders to grow rapidly, including improved access to food, again better weather more insects. So, larger spiders are more likely to be hanging in their webs around your house and appearing in your house earlier than normal.