What risk is eliminated by using the cup-and-paper relocation method for wolf spiders?
The risk of accidental egg dispersal if a female is crushed.
The primary advantage of the cup-and-paper method, besides being humane and avoiding direct contact, is that it completely bypasses the disastrous scenario caused by crushing a mother spider. When a female carrying eggs or hatchlings is squashed, the ensuing explosion of dozens of tiny, independent spiders creates a significant, immediate cleanup issue indoors. By carefully trapping the entire spider within a contained vessel, the relocation method ensures that if the spider happens to be a female tending to offspring, the egg sac or the spiderlings remain safely contained until they can be released outdoors, thereby eliminating the risk of scattering them throughout the living space.
