Two attributes--silk and venom--have contributed to the spider’s key position in the food chain (not counting their prodigious appetites). Scientists are working to put all to use.
The ancient Greeks used spider silk very effectively to staunch bleeding wounds, as have soldiers in the Vietnam War and other modern conflicts. (The silk is so fine that it actually traps the blood platelets.)
Spider venom can be used to treat certain neurological and mental disorders. A research group in Utah has isolated components from the venom of many species of North American spiders, which may help reduce brain damage following strokes.
Research is also being done into putting spiders to work in on the farm, to control insect pests. One problem is that while agriculturists generally want a very specific pest eliminated, spiders will eat just about anything, including other spiders on the job.
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Spider Jokes!
Why did the spider buy a car?So he could take it out for a spin!
What does a spider do when he gets angry?
He goes up the wall!What would happen if tarantulas were as big as horses?
If one bit you, you could ride it to hospital!
What does a spider do when he gets angry?
He goes up the wall!What would happen if tarantulas were as big as horses?
If one bit you, you could ride it to hospital!
Friday, June 19, 2009
Spider Expert gets Bitten!
A holidaying entomologist yesterday joined his wife on the list of funnel-web spider bite victims when a critter nibbled on his thigh as he tried to put on a pair of pants. Mulbring insect expert Dr Ross Dixon spent four hours in Calvary Mater Newcastle Hospital. He was allowed to leave when toxicologists were certain he was not showing any signs that venom had entered his blood.
It ended an eventful morning for the 58-year-old, who felt a sharp pain on his left thigh when he was trying to put on a pair of pants he had used to garden in the previous day at the family's Hawks Nest holiday home. "I realised it wasn't an ant biting me," Dr Dixon said. "I dropped my pants on the floor and there was a very, very large male funnel-web on the floor next to the pants." Dr Dixon stayed calm and caught the spider so it could be identified.
When the Hunter Westpac rescue helicopter arrived to take him for possible antivenom treatment, the spider hitched a ride. It is the third known funnel-web spider bite in NSW in a week, and the second in the Hunter in four days. A person needed antivenom at Wyong Hospital after they were bitten at Lake Macquarie on New Year's Eve. It also comes a couple of years after Dr Dixon's wife, Julia, was bitten by a funnel-web spider at Blackalls Park.
"We spend a lot of time outdoors so we have come across them from time to time," Dr Dixon said. Clinical toxicologist Dr Geoff Isbister said the Hunter and Central Coast were hot spots for funnel-web spiders, especially in summer. There were 40 species of funnel-webs, but it was difficult to tell which species yesterday's culprit belonged to. Dr Isbister said although there had not been a death attributed to funnel-web spiders since the introduction of antivenom in 1980, the side effects were dangerous and the chance of death was real. "The best advice is that they are big black spiders, so if you get bitten by a big, black spider then you should get immediate first aid treatment," he said. *SMH
It ended an eventful morning for the 58-year-old, who felt a sharp pain on his left thigh when he was trying to put on a pair of pants he had used to garden in the previous day at the family's Hawks Nest holiday home. "I realised it wasn't an ant biting me," Dr Dixon said. "I dropped my pants on the floor and there was a very, very large male funnel-web on the floor next to the pants." Dr Dixon stayed calm and caught the spider so it could be identified.
When the Hunter Westpac rescue helicopter arrived to take him for possible antivenom treatment, the spider hitched a ride. It is the third known funnel-web spider bite in NSW in a week, and the second in the Hunter in four days. A person needed antivenom at Wyong Hospital after they were bitten at Lake Macquarie on New Year's Eve. It also comes a couple of years after Dr Dixon's wife, Julia, was bitten by a funnel-web spider at Blackalls Park.
"We spend a lot of time outdoors so we have come across them from time to time," Dr Dixon said. Clinical toxicologist Dr Geoff Isbister said the Hunter and Central Coast were hot spots for funnel-web spiders, especially in summer. There were 40 species of funnel-webs, but it was difficult to tell which species yesterday's culprit belonged to. Dr Isbister said although there had not been a death attributed to funnel-web spiders since the introduction of antivenom in 1980, the side effects were dangerous and the chance of death was real. "The best advice is that they are big black spiders, so if you get bitten by a big, black spider then you should get immediate first aid treatment," he said. *SMH
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Spiders are a very valuable animal to have in the garden. They eat pest insects, and other insect eaters are attracted to the garden to feed on the spiders. Frogs and lizards consume large amounts of insects. Some gardeners say they have entered into "voluntary workplace agreements" with these animals. They don’t spray their gardens with poison, and provide a safe home for the spiders, lizards, frogs and birds. In return these animals keep their gardens free of plant eating pests.
But some insects also attack spiders. The female Hymenoepimecis wasp attacks the Plesiometa argyra spider at the hub of its orb, stings it into temporary paralysis and lays an egg on the spider's abdomen, which hatches into a larvae that grows by sucking the spider's fluids. On the night that it will kill its host, the larva induces the spider to build a cocoon web, moults, kills and consumes the spider, and then spins its pupal cocoon hanging by a line from the cocoon web!
As much as earthworms are evidence of fertile, well-aerated soil, spiders are a sign of ongoing pest control in the garden.
Spiders provide an around-the-clock garden security service that puts the clamps on leafhoppers, aphids, caterpillars, marchflies and ants. A spider eats twice its weight in insects every day. Of course, sensible gardeners wear gloves so they don't accidentally hurt a spider while they are gardening. *
But some insects also attack spiders. The female Hymenoepimecis wasp attacks the Plesiometa argyra spider at the hub of its orb, stings it into temporary paralysis and lays an egg on the spider's abdomen, which hatches into a larvae that grows by sucking the spider's fluids. On the night that it will kill its host, the larva induces the spider to build a cocoon web, moults, kills and consumes the spider, and then spins its pupal cocoon hanging by a line from the cocoon web!
As much as earthworms are evidence of fertile, well-aerated soil, spiders are a sign of ongoing pest control in the garden.
Spiders provide an around-the-clock garden security service that puts the clamps on leafhoppers, aphids, caterpillars, marchflies and ants. A spider eats twice its weight in insects every day. Of course, sensible gardeners wear gloves so they don't accidentally hurt a spider while they are gardening. *
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Some Spiders can Bite!
There are also spiders that give a nasty bite comparable to the stinging of a wasp. Most of the venom injected with these bites causes cell death and gives rise to a wound that does not heal properly and becomes easily infected. There is spider on Fraser Island in Queensland that is called by the locals the Fraser Island funnel web. I saw someone recently who had been bitten on the leg by one of these spiders, and it was a horrific wound. However, new research has suggested that some cancer, fungal and bacterial infections may have been misdiagnosed as whitetail spider bites.
While there is no doubt a few of our native spiders are very dangerous, the vast majority are not. Spiders feed mostly on insects, and are an essential part of our ecosystem. While they reduce insect numbers that may otherwise cause problems to humans, they also provide food for many other species. Unfortunately some pest control companies have demonised the spider, and created an unwarranted fear, or arachnephobia, in the community.
While there is no doubt a few of our native spiders are very dangerous, the vast majority are not. Spiders feed mostly on insects, and are an essential part of our ecosystem. While they reduce insect numbers that may otherwise cause problems to humans, they also provide food for many other species. Unfortunately some pest control companies have demonised the spider, and created an unwarranted fear, or arachnephobia, in the community.
Trapping and Trading in Spiders for Pets Causes Alarm!
In 2006 the Herald Sun reported that an exotic South African bird-eating tarantula spider was sent to Australia in a film canister by airmail from Denmark. The live baby spider was seized by Customs in Adelaide. The spider, commonly known as a Goliath bird-eating tarantula, can grow up to 25cm long when mature. The Goliath tarantula, with its 2cm-long fangs, can cause severe pain, nausea and profuse sweating.
The baby tarantula, about the size of a 20c piece, was found at the Adelaide mail centre inside a photo canister from Denmark on June 22, 2004. The tarantula was seized because the importation of live animals without a permit was prohibited. Customs were continuing investigations to find the people behind the spider's importation.
The collecting of bird eating spiders for pets in North Queensland has also raised concerns about their conservation status. The Queensland government changed Legislation allowing the spiders to be collected from the wild for pets in the early 1990’s. We argued they shouldn’t do this, but the Queensland government rarely listens to logical argument. In less than 15 years, some experts believe that Queensland bird eating spiders have been heavily reduced in numbers by collectors. *
The baby tarantula, about the size of a 20c piece, was found at the Adelaide mail centre inside a photo canister from Denmark on June 22, 2004. The tarantula was seized because the importation of live animals without a permit was prohibited. Customs were continuing investigations to find the people behind the spider's importation.
The collecting of bird eating spiders for pets in North Queensland has also raised concerns about their conservation status. The Queensland government changed Legislation allowing the spiders to be collected from the wild for pets in the early 1990’s. We argued they shouldn’t do this, but the Queensland government rarely listens to logical argument. In less than 15 years, some experts believe that Queensland bird eating spiders have been heavily reduced in numbers by collectors. *
Have you had an Unforgetable Experience with a Spider?
Most of us have had an unforgettable experience with a huntsman. Huntsman can grow as large as a full hand span, but its bite is insignificant. Quite often the huntsman live in houses behind a picture frame or under the bed, and at night come out and eat insects such as cockroaches.
I read recently some statistics that said every human during their lifetime consumes an average of six spiders at night while they are asleep, but I’m sure they didn’t mean six large huntsmen.
Spiders are fascinating creatures, with fascinating names. There are the huntsman, wolf spiders, ogre-faced spiders, (could be renamed Shrek spiders) golden orb, daddy longlegs (or vibrating spiders, called so because they sit and vibrate) spitting spiders, crab spiders, jumping spiders, burrowing spiders, water spiders, and many others. Many are unique to Australia, although they have relatives in similar families overseas.
Spiders have eight legs, and insects only have six. Of course, a leg or two more or less doesn’t really make much of a difference if a large hairy animal is crawling up inside your trousers.
Spiders mostly prey on insects. The jaws of a modern spider are used to grab and crunch a prey. Most spiders use poison to kill their victims. At the end of the jaws are two syringe-like structures that are hollow and very sharp. These are used to puncture the body of a victim and to inject the poison.
Primitive spiders have forwardly pointing jaws that move forwards and backward in contrast to the modern spider. Therefore they cannot crunch a prey. They wait until the prey contents are dissolved before they can suck it empty.
I read recently some statistics that said every human during their lifetime consumes an average of six spiders at night while they are asleep, but I’m sure they didn’t mean six large huntsmen.
Spiders are fascinating creatures, with fascinating names. There are the huntsman, wolf spiders, ogre-faced spiders, (could be renamed Shrek spiders) golden orb, daddy longlegs (or vibrating spiders, called so because they sit and vibrate) spitting spiders, crab spiders, jumping spiders, burrowing spiders, water spiders, and many others. Many are unique to Australia, although they have relatives in similar families overseas.
Spiders have eight legs, and insects only have six. Of course, a leg or two more or less doesn’t really make much of a difference if a large hairy animal is crawling up inside your trousers.
Spiders mostly prey on insects. The jaws of a modern spider are used to grab and crunch a prey. Most spiders use poison to kill their victims. At the end of the jaws are two syringe-like structures that are hollow and very sharp. These are used to puncture the body of a victim and to inject the poison.
Primitive spiders have forwardly pointing jaws that move forwards and backward in contrast to the modern spider. Therefore they cannot crunch a prey. They wait until the prey contents are dissolved before they can suck it empty.
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