It’s extraordinary how a change in the weather can turn the mundane into something magical. Every day I’ve been walking past these hogweed umbels without noticing the spider gossamer draped over them, but a foggy day transformed them with thousands of microscopic water droplets. Amazing stuff, spider silk, famously strong and durable – see http://www.earthlife.net/chelicerata/silk.html#1
Check out this incredible textile, made from the golden silk of a million Madagascan golden orb spiders, at http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/09/spider-silk/
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Very true. A misty/foggy morning highlighting these spider strands really transforms a landscape.
ReplyDeleteHi Keith, it's amazing how durable spider silk is, with webs surviving long after the spiders that spun them have gone..
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