Habitat of a Water Spider

Habitat

• Water spiders live in freshwater ponds and lakes in northern and central Europe. They rarely live in moving water because currents can destroy their nests. Water spiders weave silk nests shaped like bells. These spiders usually build their nests beneath underwater plants for protection and stability.

Breathing

• Water spiders fill their nests with air bubbles that allow them to breathe. They don't need to replenish these bubbles, as oxygen diffuses from the surrounding water, replacing carbon dioxide. They fill the nest with air bubbles by swimming to and from the surface carrying bubbles on their hairy bodies. The spiders breathe through two small slits beneath their abdomens, which are connected to lungs. They use these slits to draw air out of bubbles.

Movement

• These spiders use their legs to swim underwater and walk on reeds, lily pads or other vegetation above the surface. When the spiders leave the nest, they carry tiny air bubbles on their legs, which allow them to breathe and make them appear silver in the water.

Feeding and Predators

• Water spiders are carnivores that eat mayfly nymphs, midge larvae and mites. They leave their nests to hunt, swimming swiftly to catch their prey, which they poison with powerful, venomous jaws. Water spiders can be consumed by larger aquatic creatures such as frogs and fish.

Reproduction

• Unlike many arachnids, the female water spider does not consume the male after she mates with him. The male is larger than the female, a characteristic that also is distinct from other species of spiders. Females lay 30 to 70 eggs in the upper portion of the nest. They stay inside to guard the eggs until they hatch. Young spiders fill abandoned snail shells with air and live there until they have reached maturity and can build their own nests.