Oooooo, Yuck!

Just as one of my young daughters wanted to have a pet snake, I suppose there are those who appreciate SPIDERS.  Not me, but I'll read this next National Geographic Magazine article, Afield with the Spiders: Web Hunting in the Marshlands and Woodlands and Along the Lanes, Henry E. Ewing, August, 1933.  I'll try to at least fake a small appreciation for one of God's creatures.

"Webs, webs everywhere - hundreds of them, thousands of them - billow a gossamer sea in the morning light!  There are funnel webs, sheet webs, hammock webs, webs of indescribable shapes, and, finest of all, near the edge of the woods, the beautiful orb webs, bejeweled in their radiant symmetry," (p. 162).

How do the spiders fashion these webs?  "From the many microscopic spigots at the tips of their heavy abdomens they conjure several kinds of silk with which to construct webs of exquisite design and beauty.  They make snares for their prey, sacs for their eggs, shelters for protection from enemies, draglines for security in movement, balloons for navigating the skies, and many other things for service," (p. 162).  Each species of spiders has its own web design which does not change with the seasons. You have passed SPIDERS 101!

FYI: "Even when isolated from its own kind from the moment of its birth, a spiderling will produce exactly the same web design as its mother, " (p. 166).  There are 25,000 species of spiders.  They are found everywhere on Earth where there is life, even in Arctic regions.

The largest spiders are the South American tarantulas which can have a body 3 1/2 inches long! The smallest spider is also found in South America, 25ths of an inch long. Males of many species are smaller than the females and are poor spinners.  They may use webs of the females to ensnare their food (insects) or get leftovers from the females.

FYI: Western United States' tarantulas feed on grasshoppers and roaches.  Their bite is painful but not poisonous to humans. They have been known to live 14 to 16 years and longer.  The South American species feeds on the birds it catches.

The Black Widow spider is common in the southern United States.  It is one-half inch long; the mature female is black with an 'hour glass' red shape on its back. The Black Widow spider's venom is more powerful than the venom of a rattlesnake!  Many years ago, my uncle, a farmer, was bit by such a spider.  He almost died and took six weeks to fully recover.

For growth, spiders grow, split their 'skin' and shed it, crawling out of it.  Although they have no wings, spiders can spin a thread which catches the wind and travel aloft to distant places in the air.

There are some interesting color photographs of paintings of spiders.  I just can't call them beautiful.  Mr. Ewing devotes the rest of this article to describing unique features of various spiders around the world.  The fact I like most is that most of the eat bugs (insects)!