This weird spider uses its web as a weapon
When you think of a spider's web, you probably think of it as a trap — the spider waits patiently for some unsuspecting fly to wander into the net of sticky threads, where it will be unable to escape until the spider gets to it. But as it turns out, spiders use their webs in lots of different ways. And in the case of the triangle-weaver spider, their web is less like a trap and more like a weapon.
The triangle-weaver uses its web "the way humans might use a slingshot or a crossbow," National Geographic explained, by stretching it and using its stretchiness to propel the web forward to catch its prey.
While we've observed the unconventional methods of the triangle-weaver spider before, a new study published on Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences was the first attempt to actually study the maneuver. What researchers discovered was a startling use of the elasticity of the spider's web, like snapping a rubber band or a slingshot, to launch both spider and web forward.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Though the triangle-weaver's method is a lot more active than the sit-and-wait type of spider web we're accustomed to, there's no less patience involved in its process: Sometimes triangle-weavers hold their web in a taut position for hours on end waiting for prey to come near enough to strike, said Sarah Han, the study's lead author.
The triangle-weaver is an interesting case because it uses the same scientific principles behind the way a frog or a flea jumps — but not within the body of the spider. Instead of evolving the capacity to jump, it uses its web to accomplish the same goal. Learn more at National Geographic.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Shivani is the editorial assistant at TheWeek.com and has previously written for StreetEasy and Mic.com. A graduate of the physics and journalism departments at NYU, Shivani currently lives in Brooklyn and spends free time cooking, watching TV, and taking too many selfies.
-
Do youth curfews work?
Today's big question Banning unaccompanied children from towns and cities is popular with some voters but is contentious politically
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Sleaze baack!'
Today's Newspapers A roundup of the headlines from the US front pages
By The Week Staff Published
-
Quiz of The Week: 20 - 26 April
Puzzles and Quizzes Have you been paying attention to The Week's news?
By Rebecca Messina, The Week UK Published
-
Arid Gulf states hit with year's worth of rain
Speed Read The historic flooding in Dubai is tied to climate change
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
EPA limits carcinogenic emissions at 218 US plants
Speed Read The new rule aims to reduce cancer-causing air pollution in areas like Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Strong Taiwan earthquake kills 9, injures hundreds
Speed Read At magnitude 7.4, this was Taiwan's biggest earthquake in 25 years
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
EPA sets auto pollution rule that boosts EVs
Speed Read The Biden administration's new rules will push US automakers toward electric vehicles and hybrids
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
More than 150 people dead following earthquake in Nepal
Speed Read The death toll is expected to rise as rescue workers continue digging through rubble
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Nearly 1,000 birds dead in one night after striking building in Chicago
Speed Read The birds died after colliding with the McCormick Place convention center next to Lake Michigan
By Justin Klawans Published
-
At least 1 dead at Burning Man as thousands remain stranded from flooding
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Earthquake rattles Southern California as Tropical Storm Hilary hits
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published