Spiders produce silk from spinnerets and use it for various tasks like making webs, wrapping prey, all spiders are venomous, though very few pose any danger to humans. Most spiders live for 1-2 years, but some, like tarantulas, can live up to 25 years in captivity. Spiders rely heavily on their ability to detect vibrations through their webs.
Here are some common types of spiders –
- Wolf Spider are large, hairy spiders with excellent vision. Wolf spiders don’t spin webs. They are ground hunters, chasing their prey.
- Jumping Spider are small compact with large front eyes. They can jump up to 50 times their body length and have the best vision among spiders.
- Tarantula are large, hairy spiders often feared due to their size, their intimidating appearance, tarantulas rarely bite humans, and their venom is typically mild.
- Orb-Weaver Spider are known for their spiral-shaped webs, Orb-weavers build iconic webs and use silk to catch their prey, often rebuilding their webs daily.
- Black Widow are shiny black body with a distinctive red hourglass shape on their abdomen. Their venom is potent but rarely deadly to humans, bites can cause severe pain and muscle cramps.
- Brown Recluse are small to medium-sized with a violin-shaped mark on its back. Their bites can cause necrosis though most bites are not fatal.
- Trapdoor Spider with powerful jaws and dark coloration. These spiders dig burrows and create a camouflaged “trapdoor” out of silk and soil to ambush prey.
- Peacock Spider are tiny, brightly colored spiders with vibrant, iridescent markings, Males perform intricate dance rituals to attract females, raising colorful flaps on their abdomen like a peacock.
- Huntsman Spider are large and flat-bodied, often with a leg span up to 12 inches. Huntsman spiders are fast movers, chasing down their prey instead of using webs.
- Goliath Birdeater are largest spider by mass, with a leg span up to 11 inches, they rarely eat birds, usually feeding on insects, rodents, and other small animals.