Do Spiders Take Over Other Webs?
WouterIf you’re a fan of the web, you may have wondered, do spiders take over other webs? Several species of spiders are known to do so.
Some spiders do it for evolutionary reasons. For example, male orb-weaver spiders are known to share their web with females. They may also do it for mating purposes.
One such species, the Bolas spider, swats moths with weighted silk. The spider uses pheromones to lure the insect. The silk also contains carotenoids, which appear to be liquid gold when illuminated by the sun.
Another example is the Space-web Spider. This type of spider affixes a bowl of tangled thread to the lower branches of trees. The spider’s goal is to capture insects that fall from the tree.
In a recent study, researchers manipulated the spider’s web in order to see what happened. The researchers found that the spider changed its behaviour when it was able to manipulate its web.
The Binghamton University scientists also collected orb-weavers from the university campus and used an anechoic chamber to study the sound waves. They found that spiders respond to sounds at 68 decibels. They also soaked cotton threads in solutions that contained extracts from several different spider species.
Some scientists have suggested that spiders are capable of constructing mental representations of space. This is in comparison to mammals and birds. However, this has not been verified. In fact, this may not even be true.
Despite their small size, some orb-weaver spiders are able to capture as many as 250 insects in a single day. They also dismantle their webs at night.
