[güttsfükk]

Scientists untangle mystery of giant web
Variety of spiders built on each other’s work to produce Texas net

WILLS POINT, Texas - A variety of spider species built on one another's work to create a sprawling web that blanketed hundreds of yards of trees and shrubs at a North Texas park, according to entomologists who studied the unusual formation.

Heavy rains early this summer created prime feeding conditions for the spiders, which worked collectively to spin a web that nearly covered a pond ripe with mosquitoes and other insects.

"Normally they are cannibalistic and their webs are separated," said Allen Dean, a Texas A&M University entomologist. "They live in harmony because there's so much food available."

The web covered 200 yards (meters) along a trail at Lake Tawakoni State Park, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) east of Dallas. The August discovery of the massive web spurred debate among entomologists about its origin and rarity.

Mike Quinn, a biologist for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, collected spiders from the trees and sent them to Texas A&M.

Dean studied 250 specimens and identified 12 families of spiders in the same web. He said the most prevalent type is from the Tetragnathidae family, which typically weave individual orb-shaped webs.

Arachnid expert Hank Guarisco, of Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kan., traveled to Texas to take a look for himself. He camped at the park, observing the spiders at night because some of them are nocturnal.

He said he was impressed with the variety of spiders contributing to the web.

"Tetragnathidae are usually solitary spiders who build their own webs and mind their own business," he said. "Here they are sharing a lot of foundation strands that are all over the place. They don't have individual webs anymore."

avy rain and wind have weighted or torn down much of the web, park volunteers said.

Researchers said the spiders are still weaving fresh webs between storms. Quinn said there continue to be lots of egg sacks, which can hold dozens or hundreds of eggs.

"The continuing number of egg sacks suggests high productivity, as biologists say," Quinn said. "The females are fat and happy so to speak. They have done well so far by laying so many eggs that the spiders continue to prosper."

[Izzy_Jean]

Reminds me of Harry Potter.

[güttsfükk]

video of the web

[Mutilatedmind]

Whoa...Would not walk through there...

[JLO]

Originally Posted by Izzy_Jean ↗

Reminds me of Harry Potter.

I love Harry Potter!

[güttsfükk]

Originally Posted by JLO ↗

I love Harry Potter!

great movies to watch stoned

[Ugly]

Neat, throw a body in see what happens.

[menstrualclots]

i remember this story. i live in texas. last summer the spiders went nuts. they were living in my car and creating webs that stretched between street lights. was terrifying

[güttsfükk]

Originally Posted by menstrualclots ↗

i remember this story. i live in texas. last summer the spiders went nuts. they were living in my car and creating webs that stretched between street lights. was terrifying

did you make any videos or pictures? sounds fascinating about the street lights.

When I lived in hong kong we had these big spiders which had a smiley face (literally yellow circle with dots n a smiley moth) on their back, and they had spiders hanging between the trees sometimes two meters apart, I remember my friend walking into a strand attaching such a web to a brach and he had to use two hands to be able to pull it apart was a tough web. i walked under it and my friend spotted it n freaked when i pointed it out hanging above my head i shat my pants

[menstrualclots]

unfortunately, no, I didn't. i'll be prepared this year; some sucker at best buy approved me for one of their credit cards