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I was looking at the statistics or page views of each article I have written. Do you know what? The page that is viewed the most is "Orb weaving spiders"! And here I thought people had an aversion to spiders:). This got me to thinking. Are there other types of spider webs? Sure are! More than I imagined.
What do they look like and who spins them? Well, first take a peek at Along came a spider, http://www.viagrafix.net/pingle/ip9/spid... . Here we learn that the black widow spider is a tangle web weaver. Tangle webs are simple webs, basically a jumble of threads attached to a support. There is a picture of a funnel web made in grass. They are large webs in a funnel shape in which the spider hides. And a sheet web is simply a sheet of silk spun between a support. On to Discovery's Spiders in your own backyard, http://www.discovery.com/exp/spiders/bac... . The American house spider is a tangled web weaver, living in what the web sites terms a random "unkempt" web. It certainly looks that way from the picture ( http://www.discovery.com/exp/spiders/zoo... ). The grass spider is a funnel web weaver (http://www.discovery.com/exp/spiders/zoo... ), hiding at the narrow end waiting for it's prey. This web site let's us add a fifth type of web to our collection - one built by a trapdoor spider ( http://www.discovery.com/exp/spiders/zoo... ). The site Funnel Web Spiders, http://www.powerup.com.au/~glen/spider3.... , introduces us to funnel weavers in Australia. This page is part of a larger site Spiders, http://www.powerup.com.au/~glen/spider.h... , built and maintained by 10 year olds at Rochedale State School in Australia. Looking through their line-up of other spiders allowed me to add two more types of webs to our collection (now at seven). The net casting spider weaves a net and casts it over it's prey trapping the insect on the ground ( http://www.powerup.com.au/~glen/casting.... ). Amazing. To see some great pictures of the spider holding it's net visit http://www.geocities.com/brisbane_spider... . Unbelievable. And what about the tent weaving spider ( http://www.powerup.com.au/~glen/tentspi.... )? The site states that the spider weaves an orb web along the ground then the pulls the centre vertical to form a tent. To learn more about tent spiders visit http://www.geocities.com/brisbane_spider... . There is a diagram of a tent web showing how it is constructed. The author also contrasts the tent web with a normal orb web. Go To Page: 1 2
The copyright of the article A Spider'sTangled Web in Science Websites is owned by . Permission to republish A Spider'sTangled Web in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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