How Do Spiders Create Silk?
WouterSpiders create silk to make webs and traps. It is a protein-baed fibre that is strong and stretchy. The main purpose of silk is to wrap prey in a clingy layer. But there are also other uses for the silk.
One of the ways spiders build webs is through the use of draglines. This safety net helps the spider capture a prey that has jumped off a flower or a plant.
Another way spiders use the silk is to create smooth walls in burrows. This is done with the aid of glue and aggregate, which are secreted from the piriform gland. The glue on the thread is dissolved by pollen and dust.
When the spider is ready to begin building its web, it releases a thread. It may or may not need all the silk that it produces. The average spider only needs a small amount of silk.
A spider’s abdomen is where the silk glands and spinnerets are located. There are several in each spider. The silk glands produce a liquid gel, which is then funnelled down a tiny tube to a spinneret.
When the silk is inside the spinneret, it starts to solidify. The fluid, which is made up of long chains of protein, is coated with a mixture of water-repellent mix to give the silk its sticky surface. The silk is spun through the spinneret to form a long fiber that looks like a thin thread.
The spigots on the spinneret tip the strands and control the diameter of the emerging thread. When the spinnerets are fully formed, the strands of the silk begin to cling together. This forms the web that the spider uses to eat its prey.
