Orb weaver spiders: animals, creators of an engineering masterpiece

Description of the family of orbweavers

Spiny orb-weaver spider.

Orb-web spiders are considered the best masters in weaving a trapping web. The web of this type of spider is very plastic and elastic. If you stretch it 5 times, it will still not tear and will return to the same shape.

Females, namely they are engaged in weaving webs, create a real masterpiece. Their spiral networks are engineering marvels. A spider creates one large web quickly, within an hour.

Where are the networks located?

Spinner in the web.

The web primarily serves one purpose - to catch prey for eating. This is a trap, near or in the center of which the spider is waiting for its food.

Orb weaving spiders prey on insects, so they place their web in the places where they live. The place where the spider settles is between plants. Moreover, the whole structure begins with one cobweb, which the spider weaves and launches so that it catches on another plant in the wind.

How the web spins

When such a network is launched, the spider makes a second network in parallel, a kind of bridge, which helps to descend. This is the basis of the web, from which dry radial threads then go.

After that, thin threads are added that create a honeycomb in the form of a spiral. She has a lot of turns and she is very thin, hardly noticeable. Dry spirals are made by animals in order to get over the web, but not stick to it.

Orb-web hunting

Spinner waiting for a victim.

Almost all species are passive predators. Near the web, they prepare a lair for themselves from leaves and wait there until a victim is caught in the net. When an insect falls into a sticky trap, the orb weavers carefully approach it.

In case the victim resists, many species of the family have thorns. In the case when the insect is dangerous or too large, the orbworm breaks the web around, does not risk.

When prey gets stuck in a scattered net, it begins to move actively and thereby cling even more. The spider bites the victim and injects its poison, wraps it with a thread.

Another destination

Orb weavers weave their web also for another purpose - to lure a partner. The females make a net, and the males find them using this design. But a man must be very careful not to become food before he has become a sexual partner.

The spider finds a suitable web and pulls the cobwebs to lure the female. At the same time, he needs to be careful not to get into the sticky part of the web.

Benefit and harm

Most of the orb weavers are small in size and their bite is not harmful to humans. The web, of course, is a kind of work of art, but it does not cause a very pleasant feeling when you get into it.

Great benefit from these spiders for people. They are good predators, helping to clean the garden and vegetable garden from insect pests of agriculture.

Interesting Facts

Orbweavers were the first spiders to fly into space. The scientists took two females to test how the web would weave in zero gravity. But the weightlessness did not affect the two spiders from the Crusader family, their skill and lace did not change.

Types of spinners

Circular weavers are those spiders that weave their web in a special way, making it especially round, vertical or flat. Of the many species on the territory of the Russian Federation, only a few live.

wasp spider

Agriope Brünnich has an unusual striped color, for which she received the name Wasp or Tiger. She mastered the art of weaving in two different techniques. In the web, she makes special inserts that shine brightly and so attract insects.

Spider spider

He is a rare representative and meeting with him is a real success. Although its size may surprise. This species is distinguished by a web with a large number of honeycombs and its golden tint. At night, the net is not visible, so even small birds can get into it.

Spider Darwin

This is a new type of orb-weaving spider that has the largest and most durable web. This is not an exaggeration, the web can stretch up to 25 meters, often stretched over bodies of water. Despite the fact that the spider itself is small in size.

Cross fittings

The largest species among the family of orbweavers are spiders. They can vary in size, color and lifestyle. But one thing is invariable - a strong, round web that catches many insects.

Conclusion

Orb-weaving spiders are a large family that includes spiders of different sizes and shapes. Among them there are tropical inhabitants and those that live near man. Their web is a real masterpiece, spiders prepare it to catch food, thereby ridding the garden and vegetable garden of harmful insects.