Spiders cling to the wall thanks to silk

Some spiders have developed mechanisms so far unknown to avoid the risk of slipping off the walls they are clinging to. German researchers have discovered that the wolf spider secrete a silk that has a stickiness thanks to the tiny glands on its legs that allow them to move on vertical and smooth surfaces.

Source: spiderzrule The team led by Stanislas Gorv of the Max Planck Institute noted that the wolf spider Aphonopelma seemanni in Costa Rica has the ability to release viscous fibers with diameters from 0.2 to 1 micrometer from four pairs of legs. when there is a risk of slipping on a glass door.

The researchers claim this finding will raise new questions about the evolution of modern spiders.

Spiders carry on their stomachs a silk-secreting bag that helps them weave the net. According to the researchers, spiders may have begun to secrete silk from their legs to avoid slipping and maintaining survival.

The researchers said they would analyze the silk gene secreted from spider legs to compare with the "classic" silk of spider webs. This silk has been the target of many durable and elastic chemists' studies for industrial applications.