Daddy long legs are not daddy long legs. Has my whole life been a lie?

[EightToSixer]

I’m middle aged and I’ve thought my whole entire life that daddy long legs were large flying bugs that look like spiders but fly around particularly at dusk and dark.
Discussion with FIL yesterday and it turns out that daddy long legs is a type of arachnid and that what I thought was a daddy long legs is actually a crane fly?!?

I’m a well educated middle aged woman, how did I only just find this out? Why has nobody corrected me all this time?

Make me feel less stupid by telling me what you didn’t know!

Several species are referred to as daddy long legs, particularly crane flies, harvestmen and cellar spiders. The first two aren’t spiders.

I love how the cellar spider holds onto their egg sac all the time and only putting it down to feed.

Crane flies have been Daddy Long Legs to me my whole life. I used to be terrified of them and remember screaming the place down my first year in uni residence as they kept flying into my room.

They are just reappearing here in Vancouver.

@Shellfishblastard I've only ever heard my Dad use Jenny Long Legs so it's interesting to hear someone else use it!

We always called them Johnny Long Legs! They're still crane flies though. My eldest is petrified of them.

We call them Jenny Long Legs too. So glad there are at least 2 other people in the world who call them by their correct name

How the fuck are they the same thing 😆

Crane flies are Jinny Spinners

Your FIL is correct. Daddy Long Legs are spiders, Crane Flies are the flying insects with the dangly legs.

I remember having a very drunken argument with my Australian friend about what a daddy long leg was.

Obvs in Australia it’s a spider but not in the UK. Think we ended up not speaking for a week 😂

I've always known crane flies as Daddy Long Legs.

I only found out today (from a different mumsnet thread) that some people call spindly spiders Daddy Long Legs or Daddy Long Legs Spiders.

Daddy long legs are most certainly a spider where I'm from. A crane fly is simply a crane fly 🤷🏼‍♀️

Daddy Long Legs fuckers.

They’re the flying bastard ones that come in august September flying in your face and through your window like twats. Fuckers. What’s this nonsense about spiders? Nonsense.

@tiredanddangerous

A daddy long legs is a crane fly. Evil fuckers. Why do they always fly straight at your face?!!

Absolutely. They wait for me to just about get into bed, then fly straight at my face. So I have to run out the room and can't go to bed that night. Fuckers!

@Shellfishblastard

Sorry you are both long - they are actually called Jenny Long Legs

Yes! I honestly thought it was only me and my immediate family growing up who used this name!

They called Fucking Bastard Idiot Craneflies, especially when they appear to always fly right at your face, unlike any self respecting spider of considerable leggage, who will always opt for a discreet exit beneath the sofa.

Why would anyone give wings to a spider? I hate the first bit of autumn because of daddy long legs season.

My Granny used to call them Jenny with the Hunder legs!

Jenny long legs. No one call them this?

Definitely in Australia there is no confusion. Daddy Long Legs is only the spider that looks like a grain of grey rice with legs 15 times the length of their bodies. Don’t even think we have those other spindly flying thingos? But if we don’t, it’ll be a bloody miracle!

The spindly spiders are harvestmen spiders and daddy long legs are crane flies!

It’s like wasps aren’t wasps. They’re actually just cunts!

Was having this very discussion with my Dh the other day. Glad to know we aren't the only ones who have such pointless debates!

I’ve never heard of Jenny Long legs, this is very unsettling. MN is weird.

Crane flies are daddy long legs in the UK. In the US they call something else (this spider thing) the same name

There is surely no THIS IS WRONG/ RIGHT about local vernacular?!

Daddy long legs is crane fly to me.

Other people may call different animals that and that's fine.

I had a terrible time with chukky pigs. Similar issue. Different story!