Do spiders have a sense of smell?

Spiders learn about the world around them through their senses, including their sense of smell. While a spider does not have a nose, it does have a way of identifying the scent of other things, especially prey, through chemical receptors that are located on the spider's legs. This is why spiders sometimes release the prey insects that have become caught in their webs. Through touch, the spider can identify whether the prey is edible and safe to eat or whether it is something like a leaf that has simply blown into the web.

Not a lot is known about spiders' sense of smell, except that they smell through touching things with their legs and all spiders possess a sense of smell. Spiders have specialized hairs along their legs that allow them to smell the objects they touch by interpreting the chemicals that make up the scent. These special hairs allow the spider to identify prey insects, other insects and even other spiders. This means that if a spider is crawling on you, then it can also smell you, thanks to its hairy legs that will be touching your skin.

Spider Senses

Yes, they do. Spiders have several types of specialized hairs on them. Most sense vibrations of ground and air , but there are also temperature, moisture and taste/smell sensors (=chemosensors). In a way you could argue that spiders cannot smell, because they need to touch the thing to smell it, so it is more like tasting, really. I would, however, call it smelling. For example, when male spider follows the web left by female ofits own species, it smells its way - it would be silly to say, it tastes its way :).

Not in the sense as like humand, but spiders do have appendages called pedipalps that are sensory organs that can provide taste and smell. This would be more like pheromone receptors.

The sad part of this, is the idea of repelling spiders with scent, just won't work.

Most spiders don't care for citrus, and if they should sense this, it may have some effect as repellent.

Lemon scented furniture polish seem to have some effect.

Spiders have a sense of smell since they have scent sensitive hairs located on their legs. Chemical senses are also important to spiders, both for taste and those for smell. Spiders are hairy arthropods and are characterized by eight legs and two body parts. :) :)

They do and it is in their feet

http://www.spidersworlds.com/spider-senses.html

Many species of Spiders have very sensitive nails at the end of the limbs. This is going to help them be able to pick up various types of movement around them. They also use this to help them with tasting and smelling.

They do not appear to have a sense of smell although the males may be able to detect pheromones released by a female. The majority of spiders rely on an extremely acute sense of 'touch', detecting nearby movements via incredibly fine hairs called trichobothria.

Certainly most people would love to be able to repel spiders in the way you suggest!