How to remove spiders from your car
Gayle Lofthouse at BBC Radio Leeds spoke to Dr Elizabeth Duncan, Associate Professor of Zoology, about how to remove an unwelcome visitor.
The spider, nicknamed Steve, has been spotted crawling across the steering wheel and making webs.
Spiders like dark and quiet places so there’s a possibility that the spider has found a potential new home in the vent of Gayle’s car.
Dr Duncan explains: “Spiders don’t hear sounds the way we do. Instead, they feel vibrations so it’s unsurprising that Steve gets a bit spooked when you’re travelling down the motorway! In fact, spiders are fairly reclusive creatures and only tend to appear when they’re looking for a mate.”
Dr Duncan also explained why it’s unlikely that the spider has laid eggs.
Spiders have typically laid their eggs by now. They’ll be looking for a mate towards the end of summer.
Top tips to remove spiders
Dr Duncan suggested gently disrupting the web as the vibrations will help to encourage the spider out of its hiding place. That way, it can be gently relocated to an alternative place.
Spraying a strong fragrance may also encourage spiders to find another place to stay. Evidence suggests that spiders don’t like particularly strong smells, such as citrus.
Listen to Gayle Lofthouse on BBC iPlayer. Dr Duncan features at 1 hour 15 seconds.
Header image by Vidar Nordli-Mathisen on Unsplash
