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Strange & Interesting Facts About Spiders

Spiders belong to a classification of animals called arachnids. This means their bodies are divided into two regions, they have four pairs of legs, have exoskeletons and lack wings and antennae. Scientists have identified more than 30,000 species of spiders living in a wide range of habitats throughout the planet. Although many people suffer from arachnophobia, or a fear of spiders, many people find them interesting.

Spider Venom
- Spiders are considered venomous, which means they secrete venom and inject it into their prey by biting. Some people mistakenly call spiders poisonous, but this is incorrect because they are not toxic if ingested. There are only two species of spiders that lack venom glands, which means most spiders are venomous. Despite the fact that most spiders are venomous, they are really not a big danger to humans because spiders prefer to flee from people rather than bite, and the amount and type of venom is typically not powerful enough to cause major problems. Less than 1 percent of spiders have venom that can affect humans.
Silk
- All spider species produce silk, which is made from protein inside their bodies. Typical spiders can produce as many as seven different types of silk to be used for different purposes. Although spider silk is usually less than .04 inches thick, it is comparable in strength to high-grade steel and tougher than both steel and Kevlar. Some spiders spin webs to entangle their prey, while other species wrap their prey in silk to immobilize them. Young spiders often travel by spinning a silk balloon and parachuting to a neighboring area and most species wrap their eggs in silk for protection.
Spider Sizes
- Spiders come in all shapes, sizes and colors, ranging from nearly microscopic to the size of an average-sized rodent. The Patu digua species is the smallest species on record. They are endemic to Colombia and the males of the species measure .01 inches -- about the size of a pinhead. The largest spider on record, the giant huntsman spider, has a leg span of 12 inches. Typically found in Laos, this species feeds on insects, invertebrates and small geckos and skinks.
Underwater Spiders
- Perhaps one of the most amazing spider facts is that there is a species of spider that can spend up to a day at a time underwater. The diving bell spider spins a web that is formed into a diving bell of sorts that provides the spider with oxygen while it is underwater. Scientists have recently discovered that these spiders are also able to pull oxygen from the water, and that they can survive on low levels of oxygen, allowing them to stay submerged for quite a while before they need to resurface.

Animals & Science