Category: Spiders

Amazon Rainforest biodiversity Science Spiders Tarantula

A dinner plate-sized tarantula killed an opossum in the dark jungle

sudshr47 March 1, 2019

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The dark jungle is full of terrors. 

As it should be, because chaos reigns in the wild, and spotting the peculiar or unexpected is the norm.

“We’re always seeing crazy things,” University of Michigan evolutionary biologist Daniel Rabosky said in an interview. 

Each year Rabosky travels to the Amazon to observe and document the flourishing biodiversity deep in these jungles. On a recent trip to the Peruvian Amazon, his team filmed some nightmarish predator-prey interactions, including a large Tarantula dragging a limp opossum — a rat-like marsupial — across the dark jungle floor. 

“The body on that thing is bigger than a baseball,” said Rabosky, referring to the spider and adding that if its legs were spread out, the spider would be the size of a dinner plate.  Read more…

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Glow Palaeontology Science Spiders

This spider’s eyes still glow, even though it died 110 million years ago

sudshr47 February 17, 2019

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Fossil hunters in Korea discovered long-dead spiders preserved in rock. And to the delight of scientists, the arachnids’ eyes are still reflective — some 110 million years after the creatures died. 

It’s rare for insects — which are far more brittle than shelled sea creatures — to become fossilized in rocks. But for reasons still unknown, a couple of these spiders did fossilize, and the unique shape of their eye structures continue to reflect light — even in their petrified form. 

The reflective eye structure is called a tapetum, and it’s often used by creatures who hunt in the dark. 

“So, night-hunting predators tend to use this different kind of eye,” Paul Selden, director of the Paleontological Institute at Kansas University’s Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum, said in a statement. “This was the first time a tapetum had been in found a fossil. This tapetum was canoe-shaped — it looks a bit like a Canadian canoe.” Read more…

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Celebrities Culture Nicole Kidman Spiders

Nicole Kidman casually catches a giant spider like it’s no big deal

sudshr47 July 31, 2018

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Turns out Nicole Kidman is just as much of a badass IRL as she is on the screen. Maybe even more so.

Just take a look at her latest Instagram post, which sees her fearlessly capturing a terrifying arachnid while her children screech in fear in the background.

There’s something particularly adorable about the way one of them squeals, “GET BACK MOM, STEP BACK! IT’S GOING IN THE POOOOOL!!” Read more…

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Mashable Video Research Robots Science Spiders

Scientists taught spiders to jump on command in order to create tiny spider-like robots

sudshr47 May 22, 2018

Scientists at the University of Manchester taught a spider how to jump in order to learn how its anatomy and behavior evolved. They hope to use their findings to create micro spider-like robots.  Read more…More about Science, Robots, Mashable …

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evolution Fossils Science Spiders Tails

Scientists have discovered spiders with tails because nightmares are real

sudshr47 February 5, 2018

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Around 100 million years ago, oozing tree sap poured over hundreds of tiny spiders, killing and preserving the critters in hardened amber. 

Recently, miners in northern Burma pulled this ancient amber out of a quarry. Chunks of it were purchased by paleontologists, who found in the amber many well-preserved spiders — some of them with long, almost scorpion-like tails. Yes, tails.

After closely scrutinizing the critters, scientists have determined they’re likely a sort of proto-spider, not quite a proper arachnid, but a bridge between today’s eight-legged insect-hunters and a more primitive species. Read more…

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brazil Game Of Thrones Harry Potter lord of the rings Spiders

7 new spider species get their names from ‘Game of Thrones’ and other hits

sudshr47 January 10, 2018

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Varys from Game of Thrones. Shelob from Lord of the Rings. And, of course, Charlotte. 

They can all be found in caves in Pará, a state in northern Brazil. There, scientists discovered seven new species — and named them all after spiders in pop culture. 

No, none of them eat hobbits, or befriend curious piglets. But these six-eyed spiders are still pretty cool. Even though they live in caves, they haven’t lost their pigmentation or all of their eyes. (Most spiders, BTW, have eight eyes.) Some of them were even discovered outside of caves.  Read more…

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Biotech biotechnology biotechnology startups Bolt Bolt Threads Fashion fashion industry Fundings & Exits Health microorganisms spider silk Spiders TC

Spider silk startup Bolt Threads closes on $123 million in Series D funding

sudshr47 January 3, 2018

 Bolt Threads, the startup making spider silk from microbugs, has raised a giant $123 million Series D round of funding. As we reported in November, an SEC filing showed the company had raised $106 million from Foundation Capital and Formation 8. Bolt now tells TechCrunch it has added to that amount, bringing up its total to $147 million raised so far. Read More

View More Spider silk startup Bolt Threads closes on $123 million in Series D funding