Wild Thing : Harvestmen Daddylonglegs often pulsate in large
groups and emit an odd smell when threatened. By Sheryl Smith-
Rodgers Huddled together in huge masses, daddylonglegs wobble
and pulsate together with little provocation under limestone
cliffs and roof eaves. Flip over a rock, and several may scamper
out at top speed. Are they spiders? Bugs? Nope. Biologists
classify those strange-looking critters as harvestmen (Leiobunum
townsendi), so named for their abundant numbers at harvest time.
Like other arachnids, they have eight legs. But unlike spiders,
harvestmen lack fangs, venom and silk-making spinnerets. They
also have one globular body; spiders have two sections whereas
insects have three. Some species have extra long legs. Others
run around on short, stubby ones. Nocturnal, harvestmen live
under rocks and logs, in caves, and other sheltered areas, and
sometimes inside homes. Scavengers by nature, they eat nearly
anything, including worms, snails, small bugs, dead matter and
plants. A tiny pair of e