Should You Release House Spiders Outdoors?

Live Science

Some gentle souls will trap spiders in a jar and release them outside, waiting for them to scurry away. But is this outdoor relocation an act of compassion, or a death sentence for the spider?

Transcript

00:00Is it okay to throw house spiders outside?

00:04If you spot a spider creeping through your room,

00:08is it okay to scoop it up in a jar and throw it outside?

00:11It turns out it depends.

00:13This method only works if the spider species is native to the area.

00:18If the spider is not a native, but a transplant, odds are it will die outside,

00:24even if the spider's ancestors arrived to the region decades to hundreds of years ago.

00:29That's because most spiders are adapted to specific places and temperatures.

00:34The American house spider is likely native to northern South America,

00:39so it undoubtedly lives outdoors just fine if your backyard is in Brazil.

00:44Even spiders that move to places with similar climates have trouble.

00:48The giant house spider is a native of England and traveled west

00:52when the British settled in British Columbia, Canada.

00:55Then it moves south to Seattle and other parts of the northwestern United States.

00:59But the giant house spider is hardly ever found outside,

01:03even though Seattle is just as mild and rainy as London.

01:07The more compassionate way to deal with spiders you find indoors

01:10is to scoop them up and put them in part of your residence

01:13where you don't mind having spiders, such as the garage.

01:16This way the spider will live another day to catch flies and other small pests

01:21that are invading your space.

01:22How spiders? Just another one of life's little mysteries.

01:25Just a little mysteries.

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