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July-ish is spider wasp season, which come in and kill all the spiders...then the birds eat all the spider wasps. Circle of life.
Probably not the advice you're looking for, but the Chicago area only has two poisonous spiders, and they're exceedingly rare. The spiders that hang out on patios are typically harmless, and not aggressive. I adopt a live and let live mentality because they kill the flies and gnats and I find them far more annoying. Wolf spiders can be intimidating because they can be large and fast, but they want to deal with you as much as you want to deal with them, generally.
It's possible, not within their normal range but I'm sure its not unheard of. Kind of like the black bear that was wandering central IL a few months ago.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_recluse_spider#/media/File:Loxosceles_reclusa_range.png
> July-ish is spider wasp season, which come in and kill all the spiders...then the birds eat all the spider wasps.
Then the Perigrine Falcons eat the Birds.
As someone who just moved into a high rise and hates spiders…how do they get there?? Where I’m from you are safe from spiders the higher up you are. First-floor and basement apartments are where the spiders come out to terrorize. Why are they all up in your high-rises?!
Spiders can "fly". Enjoy the rest of your day knowing this information.
[https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/spiders-fly-on-the-currents-of-earths-electric-field](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/spiders-fly-on-the-currents-of-earths-electric-field)
They are usually out on the balcony or by your windows outside. Pretty rare to see a spider inside in a high rise, sometimes I get some tiny ones that slip through the window crack but that’s it.
I do believe they nest and lay eggs within cracks in facade but also they are blown in by the wind.
Specifically, there’s so many gnats and flies by the lake that there’s plenty of food. I actually think the spiders are a positive thing for the city. Imagine not having them and swallowing gnats constantly while jogging the lakefront path.
Time for me to make my annual post:
*Larinioides sclopetaria,* sometimes called the bridge spider, is an orb-weaving spider that is not dangerous. It's found throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. The young spiders spin a bit of silk that is caught by the wind, taking them away from home. Sometimes far away. Like from western Michigan across the lake to Chicago. The spiders fly across Lake Michigan "on gossamer wings" and land on Chicago highrises.
In more natural environments, these spiders live on rocks (or bridges, thus the name) overhanging water. In the city, they have found the next best thing: tall buildings. Lighted windows attract an enormous amount of insects, providing the spiders with a delicious nightly feast.
"Not dangerous."
Unless you walk into an orb weaver's web early in the morning on your commute into work and go full public freakout into oncoming traffic.
There’s actually a man in a spider suit who spins a web to travel on and between high rises. But you don’t need to fear him!! He’s only around to fight crime.
Last year I sprayed hairspray on one on a web on my balcony and then lit it on fire. Wouldn’t advise it but it did get rid of it. And no I was not sober
LOL I have such a fear of spiders and I was so pissed off I couldn’t enjoy my balcony. Please note my balcony is made of metal not wood so I would not advise this if your balcony is made of wood
Oh you sweet summer child. The 875 N Michigan (John Hancock Tower) has plenty of spiders outside of the windows on the 96th floor. They are too high up for birds to feast on. Also, you will see they are cute stubby spiders hanging by the web looking like chunky houseflies. They look cute because their legs are retracted. Once those legs come out the arachnophobia kicks in. But they are eating plenty of flies and mosquitos.
If you peek out your window when it's very dark you will usually see a very large spider (think palm of your hand) come along and eat the small spiders.
There's always one king spider out there which is why the smaller spiders will risk coming indoors.
The problem is how they get there. They spin webs that are essentially parachutes. You can use most insect killers like ortho home defense and do a perimeter spray along the edge of the balcony, and then the edges of the walls if you’re enclosed. If they touch the chemical they will die. That said, if they land in a spot not sprayer, they might web there and not die. I used to spray once every month and was spider free.
>They spin webs that are essentially parachutes
New fear unlocked right there. Thanks for THAT.
I could be walking along the street and some fuckin paradrop of eight-legged freaks just lands in my face, sets up a perimeter around the drop zone? Jesus christ that sounds terrifying.
Haha, they typically parachute pretty high up with the wind. They do get super big. When I lived in a high rise I loved seeing the ones spin webs on the windows and watch them grow over the season.
Ah ok that explains it.
I’m on the 15th floor and was curious as to how there could be SO MANY this high. I didn’t think it was instinct to start climbing and don’t stop.
I’m not shocked to see a few spiders but last year on one of the nicer spring days I stopped counting after 50 on my 10x6 balcony.
Obviously the downvotes because people don’t want you to kill. There are also spider repellent sprays that don’t kill if you are so inclined. Up to you how you remedy the situation.
Honestly a broom and birds are the most effective. I haven’t tried it personally but mint and I want to say lavender is supposed to keep them away.. and now that I think about it I had a huge mint plant last year and not that many spiders 🤔
The only "trick" I know of is our pest control guy that sprays entire apartments and then the stairways and balconies as well. He knows how terrified I am of everything and I'm just sure to give him a gift card around the holidays and his birthday lmao.
I just got ambushed by a spider hanging directly over my toilet so I struck back firmly. Draw a line with spider spray around the areas you want to protect
remove their webs where you don't want them and relocate them. If they're house spiders they're essentially harmless but make a blob of webs in their chosen spot.
Fun fact about spiders going where they're not supposed to!
Apparently spiders are attracted to gasoline. Some older subarus have the evap exhaust in the perfect spot that spiders can easily access it, crawl up the tube, and die. It it happens too often they'll eventually block the tube and you'll start throwing codes.
That must be a fun one to fix.
Lived on 20th floor in my 20’s and never went on my balcony because of the spiders and the bugs that get blown in off the lake…then again I never wanted to buy balcony furniture back then…I live in a garden terrace now and spiders find their way in side. If I lived in a high rise now on a high floor (20 years later) I would be buying furniture and I would enclose it in netting somehow. If it’s covered you can always use tension rods from floor to ceiling and sort out a way to do it with clips.
Sometimes it can look like the spiders are floating in mid-air, and that there's very little you can do to get rid of them, but if you look more closely, you'll notice that the spiders are actually sitting on geometric patterns of silk or "webs." This is how they catch other insects to eat. If you knock down these "spider-webs" the spiders will have nowhere to catch food and will go elsewhere.
They are your friends! All they want to do is eat the flying critters that buzz around your balcony and into your unit. During the day they hang out under railings, out of sight, and at night they chill in thier webs waiting for dinner. Every big spider represents hundreds, if not thousands of dead pests. You gotta learn to coexist!
The one thing I'll add is that occasionally one may try to put a web up by my door or something. If its in my way I just knock it down a few times and the spider relocates to a better spot.
Highrise spiders are the best!
I have used just a standard spray that kills them and prevents them from gathering. Used it the last two years and works great. I spray in May and spray again in August and I’m all set.
It takes being relentless. Going out in late spring also reveals little balls clinging up on the overhang which is - a nest or whatever you call it. Dislodge it and small spiders come out.
I routinely go out and physically kill them. Rubber gloves…tissue… Ugh.
‘Even if I stay on top of my balcony space there are spots out of reach so that’s why the routine - go back out next week and repeat.
To me - late July and August seems to be when the massive ones are out. I usually have people here for A&W Show so spider patrol has to ramp up.
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July-ish is spider wasp season, which come in and kill all the spiders...then the birds eat all the spider wasps. Circle of life. Probably not the advice you're looking for, but the Chicago area only has two poisonous spiders, and they're exceedingly rare. The spiders that hang out on patios are typically harmless, and not aggressive. I adopt a live and let live mentality because they kill the flies and gnats and I find them far more annoying. Wolf spiders can be intimidating because they can be large and fast, but they want to deal with you as much as you want to deal with them, generally.
> Chicago area only has two poisonous spiders, and they're exceedingly rare. Obligatory venomous not poisonous.
I heard a helpful saying once to help remember the difference: If YOU bite it and you die, it's poisonous. If IT bites you and you die, it's venomous
The letter V looks like a fang, and if a venomous animal gets its fangs in you, you die.
Soooo, you’re saying I’m good to eat them?
I just gagged.
Brown recluse I know but what’s the second?
Black widow is one. I actually don't think the brown recluse has range here, but maybe in southern Illinois it does.
Have encountered recluses in the northern suburbs so there’s a chance they are in the city as well
It's possible, not within their normal range but I'm sure its not unheard of. Kind of like the black bear that was wandering central IL a few months ago. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_recluse_spider#/media/File:Loxosceles_reclusa_range.png
Def in southern Illinois. The house I grew up in was infested with them
Yeah, I let spiders live at my place unless they’re all up in my business
> July-ish is spider wasp season, which come in and kill all the spiders...then the birds eat all the spider wasps. Then the Perigrine Falcons eat the Birds.
> then the birds eat all the spider wasps But isn't that a bit short-sighted? What happens when we're overrun by birds?
As someone who just moved into a high rise and hates spiders…how do they get there?? Where I’m from you are safe from spiders the higher up you are. First-floor and basement apartments are where the spiders come out to terrorize. Why are they all up in your high-rises?!
Spiders can "fly". Enjoy the rest of your day knowing this information. [https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/spiders-fly-on-the-currents-of-earths-electric-field](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/spiders-fly-on-the-currents-of-earths-electric-field)
They unironically fly across lake michigan and hit the buildings.
How the fuck did they access god mode?
They press v for no clip, just like classic Garry’s mod
The winds go the other way though?
Zip launch: RT + LT + A
If you remember the end of Charlotte’s Web, the spider babies release a long strand of webbing that gets caught by the wind and lifts them away
They are usually out on the balcony or by your windows outside. Pretty rare to see a spider inside in a high rise, sometimes I get some tiny ones that slip through the window crack but that’s it.
I do believe they nest and lay eggs within cracks in facade but also they are blown in by the wind. Specifically, there’s so many gnats and flies by the lake that there’s plenty of food. I actually think the spiders are a positive thing for the city. Imagine not having them and swallowing gnats constantly while jogging the lakefront path.
They are kind of amazing and can let out web line and be pulled by the wind. Buildings just act like nets and catch them all.
I would rather have spiders than these damn centipedes!
The furry ones eat spiders 🕷️ 😳
Time for me to make my annual post: *Larinioides sclopetaria,* sometimes called the bridge spider, is an orb-weaving spider that is not dangerous. It's found throughout the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere. The young spiders spin a bit of silk that is caught by the wind, taking them away from home. Sometimes far away. Like from western Michigan across the lake to Chicago. The spiders fly across Lake Michigan "on gossamer wings" and land on Chicago highrises. In more natural environments, these spiders live on rocks (or bridges, thus the name) overhanging water. In the city, they have found the next best thing: tall buildings. Lighted windows attract an enormous amount of insects, providing the spiders with a delicious nightly feast.
"Not dangerous." Unless you walk into an orb weaver's web early in the morning on your commute into work and go full public freakout into oncoming traffic.
I’m so sorry this happened to you.
There’s actually a man in a spider suit who spins a web to travel on and between high rises. But you don’t need to fear him!! He’s only around to fight crime.
I hear he’s coming to town as part of Broadway in Chicago. Who knew!
And bugs
We should bar any discussion regarding this phenomenon so that when new people experience it we can react with shock and incredulity.
I’ve been successful just mixing peppermint oil and water in a spray bottle.
Last year I sprayed hairspray on one on a web on my balcony and then lit it on fire. Wouldn’t advise it but it did get rid of it. And no I was not sober
This feels so dangerous but it would be SO satisfying.
Oh you’re a psychopath…nice
LOL I have such a fear of spiders and I was so pissed off I couldn’t enjoy my balcony. Please note my balcony is made of metal not wood so I would not advise this if your balcony is made of wood
How high up are we talking? Am I safe from spider invasions on the 7th floor?
no. They easily make it to the top of our 36 floor building
55 here and still cant escape the spiders
I get them on the outside of my office windows on the 74th floor.
Oh you sweet summer child. The 875 N Michigan (John Hancock Tower) has plenty of spiders outside of the windows on the 96th floor. They are too high up for birds to feast on. Also, you will see they are cute stubby spiders hanging by the web looking like chunky houseflies. They look cute because their legs are retracted. Once those legs come out the arachnophobia kicks in. But they are eating plenty of flies and mosquitos. If you peek out your window when it's very dark you will usually see a very large spider (think palm of your hand) come along and eat the small spiders. There's always one king spider out there which is why the smaller spiders will risk coming indoors.
They build kites to fly up
The problem is how they get there. They spin webs that are essentially parachutes. You can use most insect killers like ortho home defense and do a perimeter spray along the edge of the balcony, and then the edges of the walls if you’re enclosed. If they touch the chemical they will die. That said, if they land in a spot not sprayer, they might web there and not die. I used to spray once every month and was spider free.
>They spin webs that are essentially parachutes New fear unlocked right there. Thanks for THAT. I could be walking along the street and some fuckin paradrop of eight-legged freaks just lands in my face, sets up a perimeter around the drop zone? Jesus christ that sounds terrifying.
Haha, they typically parachute pretty high up with the wind. They do get super big. When I lived in a high rise I loved seeing the ones spin webs on the windows and watch them grow over the season.
Ah ok that explains it. I’m on the 15th floor and was curious as to how there could be SO MANY this high. I didn’t think it was instinct to start climbing and don’t stop. I’m not shocked to see a few spiders but last year on one of the nicer spring days I stopped counting after 50 on my 10x6 balcony.
Obviously the downvotes because people don’t want you to kill. There are also spider repellent sprays that don’t kill if you are so inclined. Up to you how you remedy the situation.
Electric leaf blower, people walking below may not be thrilled.
Just gonna leave this here https://www.bugasalt.com/pages/shop-collections#shreder
Just deal with them tbh, they take care of other pests and provide food for birds.
Honestly a broom and birds are the most effective. I haven’t tried it personally but mint and I want to say lavender is supposed to keep them away.. and now that I think about it I had a huge mint plant last year and not that many spiders 🤔
The only "trick" I know of is our pest control guy that sprays entire apartments and then the stairways and balconies as well. He knows how terrified I am of everything and I'm just sure to give him a gift card around the holidays and his birthday lmao.
Can you DM me his contact info? Thanks!
Get a Bug-a-salt
I just got ambushed by a spider hanging directly over my toilet so I struck back firmly. Draw a line with spider spray around the areas you want to protect
remove their webs where you don't want them and relocate them. If they're house spiders they're essentially harmless but make a blob of webs in their chosen spot.
Fun fact about spiders going where they're not supposed to! Apparently spiders are attracted to gasoline. Some older subarus have the evap exhaust in the perfect spot that spiders can easily access it, crawl up the tube, and die. It it happens too often they'll eventually block the tube and you'll start throwing codes. That must be a fun one to fix.
Lived on 20th floor in my 20’s and never went on my balcony because of the spiders and the bugs that get blown in off the lake…then again I never wanted to buy balcony furniture back then…I live in a garden terrace now and spiders find their way in side. If I lived in a high rise now on a high floor (20 years later) I would be buying furniture and I would enclose it in netting somehow. If it’s covered you can always use tension rods from floor to ceiling and sort out a way to do it with clips.
Sometimes it can look like the spiders are floating in mid-air, and that there's very little you can do to get rid of them, but if you look more closely, you'll notice that the spiders are actually sitting on geometric patterns of silk or "webs." This is how they catch other insects to eat. If you knock down these "spider-webs" the spiders will have nowhere to catch food and will go elsewhere.
They are your friends! All they want to do is eat the flying critters that buzz around your balcony and into your unit. During the day they hang out under railings, out of sight, and at night they chill in thier webs waiting for dinner. Every big spider represents hundreds, if not thousands of dead pests. You gotta learn to coexist! The one thing I'll add is that occasionally one may try to put a web up by my door or something. If its in my way I just knock it down a few times and the spider relocates to a better spot. Highrise spiders are the best!
Just killed 3 this week.
I have used just a standard spray that kills them and prevents them from gathering. Used it the last two years and works great. I spray in May and spray again in August and I’m all set.
It takes being relentless. Going out in late spring also reveals little balls clinging up on the overhang which is - a nest or whatever you call it. Dislodge it and small spiders come out. I routinely go out and physically kill them. Rubber gloves…tissue… Ugh. ‘Even if I stay on top of my balcony space there are spots out of reach so that’s why the routine - go back out next week and repeat. To me - late July and August seems to be when the massive ones are out. I usually have people here for A&W Show so spider patrol has to ramp up.
Setting spiders loose outside kills them just FYI. It's not a favor.
These spiders are already on the outside, 15 stories up.
You don't get spiders inside?