"EEK! SPIDERS?! WHY A REPORT ON SPIDERS?!" This, is a form of arachnophobia, a fear of spiders. 50% of women and 16% of men have this phobia (including me). However, it DOES NOT help that no one is more than 10 feet away from a spider at all times! Over 38,000 species of arachnids have been discovered and can be found on all continents except Antarctica (You guys know where I'm moving to!) Arachnids have a gnarly head and an abdomen that holds all of the important stuff. They have 6-8 eyes that can only see black and white and 8 things extending from their bodies called legs. The legs are surprisingly interesting as arachnids use fluid to "inflate" their legs to move around hence why they curl up when dead. To crawl on webs, they tend to have 2-3 claws on each leg. Arachnids also have special oily bodies that prevent them from getting caught in their own traps. Their webs are made of strong proteins that are stronger than bones, this really helps trapping bugs. One problem. They all bite! Luckily, the damage will vary so you might live! To make you feel a little more secure, arachnids are extremely vital to our ecosystem. Plus, these creepy crawlies eat a ton of pesky bugs!
Written by: Catherine Russell - 10 Nov 2016
Bibliography
Lehnardt, Karin. "83 Amazing Facts about Spiders." Fact Retriever, 19 Sept 2016. Web. 9 Nov 2016.
Szalay, Jessie. "Types of Spiders & Spider Facts." LiveScience, 21 Aug 2016. Web. 9 Nov 2016.
