Today, the nephil spider is known to a relatively narrow circle of people - scientists, as well as people interested in arachnology. However, for a person with weak nerves, and especially afraid of spiders, it is better to never see him live at all - this is a truly unforgettable sight.
What do spiders look like?
In total, there are about thirty types of nephils, so the shape of the body, as well as their colors, are quite different. But what unites them all is their outstanding size. It is the nephil spider, the photo of which is attached to the article, is the largest species among those that weave the web.
Females are several times larger than males. In the latter, the size of the abdomen rarely exceeds 1 centimeter, and the total length with the legs is about 2-3 centimeters. In females, the body can have a diameter of up to 4 centimeters - it is already very unpleasant for an arachnophobe. Well, taking into account the length of the legs, the size of the spider can reach 12-14 centimeters. Imagine a spider the size of a small plate.
The color is predominantly black, but subspecies interspersing with red, yellow and white are also found.
Where do they live
As mentioned above, to date, scientists know about 30 varieties of nephils. Spiders are found in different countries and even on different continents, in almost all parts of the world. They are in Australia and Oceania, Asia and South America. But apparently, the birthplace of the nephilas spider is Africa. It is here that the largest number of varieties is recorded.
Some species are found only in a relatively small area. For example, Nephila ambigua, opened in 1911, lives exclusively in New Guinea - it has never been seen in other parts of the world. But Nephila vitiana, which was discovered back in 1847, can be found in many countries of Oceania, for example Tonga, Fiji, Indonesia. It is difficult to say how he overcame vast territories. Perhaps by accident, along with trees, branches or leaves that fell into the water and carried away by the current. But its range is really impressive.
Who are they hunting for?
Like the vast majority of spiders, the nephilus preys on insects. And because of the solid size, he needs a large amount of food. Therefore, he makes networks quite large. The largest web of nephil spiders can have an area of one square meter or more! Of course, there are a lot of insects here - even very voracious individuals have enough food.
However, other spiders skillfully use the large size of the web. Having poor eyesight, the nephil cannot visually control the entire area of its network. Therefore, she relies solely on touch. When the victim falls into the web, it twitches, and the spider, immediately noticing the vibrations of the threads, hurries to the prey in order to feast on it.
But another spider - Argyrodes colubrinus - does not like to build cobwebs, all the more so large. Instead, they prefer to parasitize on larger relatives. Knowing well that the nephil will not be able to see small competitors, they carefully run around the network without causing much hesitation, like a victim. Thin paws allow parasites not to stick to the sticky web and get to insects caught in the network, immediately after the nephil has euthanized them and carefully wrapped them with a strong thread. After that, small spiders feast on fame, and the network owner gets only leftovers.
Sometimes a network woven by one spider nephilah can be occupied by more than ten small neighbors. As a result, the owner becomes simply nothing to eat. As a result, he has to leave the old web and move away from it and the parasites to weave a new network.
The thickness of the thread produced by it and, accordingly, its strength depends on the size of the spider. The strongest web of nephil spiders is quite capable of supporting the weight of a small bird. A large area of the network leads to the fact that the birds come across them quite often. True, spiders do not eat them, but out of habit they wind them in a cocoon. This gave rise to a bunch of rumors that the nephils feed not only on insects, but also birds.
Danger to humans
Like the vast majority of spiders, the nephil is not dangerous to humans. Their poison is primarily intended for insects that have fallen into the web and are almost immobilized.
Therefore, with a bite, the appearance of blisters, severe pain, in some cases, an increase in temperature is possible. But all symptoms usually go away within 24 hours. The exception is people who are allergic to spider venom or some of its individual components. In this case, serious inflammation is possible. Asthmatics have difficulty breathing.
Since the chelicerae of the spiders are quite powerful, a bite may well leave a scar on thin skin that will drag on for many years.
Interesting Facts
This type of spider was discovered not by biologists, but by paleontologists. As early as the nineteenth century, several varieties found in amber were discovered. For a long time, experts considered the species extinct until they found living individuals in nature.
Japanese mythology contains legends of a werewolf who uses nephil spiders to turn into a beautiful woman and lure men to her.
It is noteworthy that the nephils are carefully hidden, which is why it is very difficult to see them in wildlife. Perhaps because of this, for many years, spiders have gone unnoticed, unexplored.
Conclusion
This concludes our article. Now you know a little more about nephil spiders, their size, lifestyle. Let’s hope that the information will kindle your research curiosity, and not the fear of huge spiders, in whose networks even birds often find their death.