Description of the spider. What is a spider: an insect or not. Video. The strangest spiders and unusual spiders in the world

Vegetable and animal world Our planet is rich, rich in the diversity of its inhabitants. Among them there are also creatures such as spiders. It is about them that there is a large number of superstitions, they are feared and avoided. Who are they - animals, insects? In this text material we will answer this question.

Are spiders insects or not?

There is an assumption that spiders appeared in the Paleozoic era, in Carboniferous period. This was approximately 2.5 billion years ago.

Among the inhabitants of the fauna they are considered to be invertebrate creatures. Spiders belong to arthropods, which are characterized by the presence of articulated limbs, a hard chitinous cover, acting as exoskeleton.

Spiders are often called "arachnes"- this name comes from the suborder Orthognatha, to which it is classified. It differs from other varieties of insects in numerous ways. species diversity, specific appearance. There are about 3 tens of thousands of individuals on the entire planet.

The suborder Orthognatha includes spiders, otherwise called migalomorphs. This species is covered with hairs and is small in size. Mygalomorphs primitive species according to the structure of the jaws - a jaw claw on one of the jaws. Mygalomorphs live in the dungeon. These include:

• tarantula spiders belonging to the family Theraphosidae;
• ctenises;
• funnel spiders;
• digger spiders.

The above species live in warm climatic latitudes.

The tarantula spider has a certain level of intelligence: they cannot distinguish their relatives from others. Some individuals make excellent pets. They have developed the ability to emotional level feel the owner’s mood, detect mood swings, at the same time they love to play, can protect the owner if he is in danger, and can dance to musical accompaniment.

Insects and arachnids are divided into two separate classes, which belong to phylum of animals - arthropods. They have certain differences in structure, and their significant amount. The legs are one of the first differences. If an insect has 6 of them, then a spider has 8. In addition, it has chelicerae - small-sized limbs with poisonous claws, they are located next to the arthropod’s mouth.

Front of the body: insects have a movable head, which cannot be said about arachnids. They do not have a clear division into the head, there is no neck. As a rule, the head is combined with the neck, called the cephalothorax.

Eyes. Insects have two of them, the structure of their visual organs is very complex. Arachnids have 8 eyes, some species have 6, and representatives with 2 eyes are rare.

So the spider is not an insect. It would be a mistake if it is confused with a representative of insects. In order to prove that an individual is an animal, it is enough to count the number of legs; arachnids have singular eyes with lenses; they do not have antennas characteristic of insects.

According to scientists, spider is the oldest animal. Scientists have discovered a web located in a piece of amber stone, which today is 100 million years old.

Is a spider a predator or a herbivore?

Arachnids hunt insects and regulate their numbers. Because some of the insects that make up the spider's food chain are beneficial, it is difficult to say whether it is beneficial or harmful to humans.

Predators eat their prey using their jaws, chewing the food thoroughly. As for the peaceful inhabitants of the planet, their main diet is nectar, which they obtain with the help of their proboscis.

There are spiders that hunt their own kind. They live in our homes, destroying their own relatives and insects over the winter. In difficult times they can kill their own children.

Arachnids have differences in diet.

• At the initial stage, as soon as the prey is caught, he injects gastric juice,
• Waits for some time until the soft tissues soften,
• Absorbs nutrients through a narrow mouth that does not have teeth, lips, or conventional mechanisms. oral apparatus.

Almost all individuals are these are predators. There is only one peaceful inhabitant whose diet consists of plants - Bagheera Kipling's spider.

In the abdomen of the arachnid there is a heart that expels hemolymph, “book lungs,” a digestive gland, Malpighian vessels, gonads and a weaving apparatus, so it looks like an animal.

The head of all insects is decorated with antennae; arachnids do not have antennae on the cephalothorax.

Only the spider weaves a web; it amazes with its beauty and difference. It has 6 spider warts, through the use of which a stream of adhesive suspension is released, after a few seconds the glue hardens without losing its stickiness. A spider web is a trap for insects that lack the ability to create defensive laces.

Half of the web's components are fibrin protein.

The individual is distinguished by its ability to create a web from several substances: one is sticky, the other is not. It is along these threads, which do not stick, that the individual moves. Even if it ends up in sticky threads, it will not be able to get entangled in them - the fatty coating will prevent this from happening.

Arachnids include scorpions and ticks.

Tarantula is a nocturnal predator. If disturbed, it can bite a person. By pain the bite resembles a wasp sting, the affected area becomes inflamed, causing general poisoning of the body.

Most dangerous spider living in the steppe is karakurt. It is small in size and has a black color, with 13 red dots on its back. Greatest danger is represented by a female karakurt - a bite leads to severe poisoning, can cause death. The female karakurt is bloodthirsty and cruel; after mating, she eats the male, for which she is called the “black widow.”

Irreparable harm to the arachnid population is caused by people who use insecticides in agriculture. Insecticides destroy entire populations of insects and spiders.

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Is a spider an animal or an insect?

1. The author of the question, apparently, considers only warm-blooded animals, or even only mammals? But this is so, a remark “by the way.”
   Spiders are arachnid arthropods. Although arthropods include insects (a distinctive feature of the group is 3 pairs of limbs), arachnids (4 pairs of limbs), and crustaceans, they are also decapods (5 pairs of limbs).
2. An animal, but not an insect.
3. A spider can be easily distinguished from an insect: to do this, just count the number of legs: a spider has 4 pairs of legs, and an insect has 3 pairs. Also, one of the main differences is that insects have compound eyes, while a spider has singular eyes with lenses. In addition, unlike insects, spiders do not have antennae.
   Although they also have many similarities. Both have an external skeleton (exoskeleton). The hard part of the body is on the outside, while in mammals the skeleton is inside the body. Their heart is located in the back. Breathing is done through the trachea or book lungs.
   oxygen transports the hemocyanin protein, rather than the protein hemoglobin, as in mammals.
   In 1758-59, Carolus Linnaeus published the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, in which he classified animals. Since then, biologists have improved systematic classification animal world. According to this classification, there are separate cells, at the base of which there are animals, and at the top there are people with very complex systems. With the help of DNA analysis, the location of each animal is even more precise than before. This classification is called taxonomical classification of the animal world.
   It consists of several divisions. Each division is called a type.
   The phylum Arthropoda consists of animals with an external skeleton (exoskeleton) that protects the body and connects the appendages. Their body consists of 2 parts. The first part is the cephalothorax, and the second part is the abdomen. These parts contain appendages that serve specific purposes: walking, jumping, eating and other actions. The phylum Arthropoda is divided into 5 main classes.
   Class
   1. Crustacea (Lobsters, crabs)
   2. Arachnida (spiders)
   3. Diplopoda (centipedes)
   4. Chilopoda (Centipedes (centipedes))
   5. Insecta (flies)
   Accordingly, the spider is placed in the phylum Arthropoda, class Arachnida, order Araneae.
4. A spider is an arachnid, not an insect.
   And animals are a kingdom that unites insects, spiders, fish, birds, reptiles, amphibians, protozoa, coelenterates, echinoderms and a bunch of other crap.


5. Insect - Spiders (lat. Araneae, Aranei) order of arthropods, second in number famous representatives in the class of arachnids: about 42 thousand modern and about 1.1 thousand fossil species.
6. From a scientific point of view, the large illustrated encyclopedia of intelligence introduces the initially illiterate opposition between animals and insects. The fact is that animals are a kingdom that is divided into many types and classes. There is no independent kingdom “insects” and those creatures that are usually called “insects” belong to the corresponding class in the kingdom “animals”.
   Arthropods are a phylum that includes both arachnids and insects, which are distinct classes.

   In other words, the chain looks like this:

   Kingdom - animals;
   Phylum - Arthropods;
   Class - Arachnids.

7. Insects (like spiders) are also animals, that is, representatives of the Animal Kingdom, which should be distinguished from representatives of the Plant Kingdom. All spiders are included in the class Arachnida, subphylum Chelicerae, and phylum Arthropods. Neither spider is an insect that forms another class of the tracheal subphylum of the same phylum arthropod.
8. Spiders belong to a separate group:

   Domain: Eukaryotes
   Kingdom: Animals
   Subkingdom: Eumetazoans
   Type: Arthropods
   Subtype: Chelicerates
   Class: Arachnids
   Squad: Spiders

   After all, spiders are animals!



9. This is a separate class - arachnids. Not an insect! Insects have 6 legs.
10. They're just arachnids.
    But to say specifically animals - the kingdom and insects - is a class is somehow stupid. A spider is an animal belonging to the arachnid class. Insects are also animals
11. A spider is not an insect because all insects have 6 legs, but a spider has 8 legs. Spiders are NOT insects or animals. Spiders are arachnids!
12. damn it's the size of an ant)) it's all arachnids
13. spider - arthropod (type), arachnid (class).
    insects are also a class. parallel to arachnids.
    i.e., both arachnids and insects in one type - arthropods.
    but the classes are different - spiders are arachnids, but not insects.
14. A spider is not an insect. The spider belongs to a separate group. These are arachnids.
15. insect of course)
16. A spider is an animal, but not an insect. A spider has 8 legs, and insects have 6. But both spiders and insects are animals.
17. both animal and insect
18. insect
19. spider is an arachnid

Attention, TODAY only!

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Is a spider an insect or not, and why?

Looking at the system of the living world, we can see that historically there have been 5 kingdoms: animals, plants, fungi, bacteria and viruses. Spiders belong to the animal kingdom. An interesting question: is a spider an insect or an animal that does not belong to the same class?

Common signs of insects and spiders

Insects and spiders belong to the same phylum of arthropods. Arthropods have the following external signs:

1. The body is divided into sections.
2. The limbs are articulated and are the main organs of movement. They are movably connected to each other. Animals are capable of a variety of movements.
3. The chitinous cover protects the body of the arthropod; it also covers the limbs. It protects against mechanical damage, does not allow water to pass through (prevents evaporation in terrestrial arthropods, prevents water from entering the body in aquatic organisms), and also serves as an exoskeleton (muscles are attached to it).
4. Presence of shedding. Due to the fact that the chitinous cover does not stretch.

What class do spiders belong to?

The answer to the question: “Is a spider an insect?” taxonomy gives. What class do spiders belong to? Is a spider an insect or not?

Despite the presence of common characteristics, spiders and insects previously belonged to different classes: arachnids (Arachnida) and insects (Insecta). In modern taxonomy, two classes of insects have been identified: cryptomaxillary and open-jawed, combined into one superclass - six-legged (Hexapoda). The class Arachnida stands apart. Is a spider an insect? The answer is no. However, how is it different from insects?

Signs of insects

The insect's body is divided into head, thorax and abdomen. The head consists of five fused segments. There are antennas on the head with receptors for touch and smell. The eyes are compounded, that is, they consist of many simple ocelli. There are mouthparts for chewing food.

The chest includes segments: anterior, middle and posterior. Each segment carries a pair of motor limbs. In addition, the middle and hind ones each include a pair of wings: chitinized elytra and, in fact, wings. The abdomen also consists of segments, on the sides of which paired respiratory openings open.

Signs of arachnids

Signs characteristic only of arachnids show how different spiders are from insects. They answer the question: is a spider an insect or not?

The spider's body is divided into the cephalothorax and abdomen. That is, there is no jumper between the head and chest; they are fused during evolution. And in such an arachnid as the haymaker, even the cephalothorax is fused with the abdomen. Haymakers often settle in human houses. They have long legs, however, they should be distinguished from the long-legged spider, whose cephalothorax and abdomen are separate.

The absence of antennae distinguishes spiders from insects. But there are chelicerae - limbs bearing claws. They serve to inject poison into the victim. The chelicerae of males are noticeably longer than those of females. Pedipalps are a sign of spiders. They look like a fifth pair of legs. However, spiders do not rely on it; they use it to capture prey.

Spiders' eyes are not compounded. They have from one to six pairs of eyes. Most often 8. However, vision is very poor. They distinguish objects at distances of up to 30 centimeters.

Spiders do not chew their prey. They have a narrow mouth opening with which they suck in already digested liquid. To do this, they first inject into the victim, in addition to poison, digestive juice. They wait for some time until the food is digested. They will suck up the finished liquid and can add digestive enzymes to it again. This method of digestion is called extraintestinal.

The cephalothorax consists of six fused segments, each bearing a pair of limbs: chelicerae, pedipalps and walking limbs. Spiders have eight legs and no wings.

The arachnoid glands are located in the lower part of the abdomen. Only spiders weave the web needed for hunting. The vast majority of spiders are predators.

The respiratory organs are not only the trachea, but also the leaf-shaped lungs. The latter are depressions in the abdomen. Their walls form many thin plates. Through them, gases diffuse into the hemolymph. The lungs open outwards with breathing holes.

Convergent traits of spiders and insects

Scientists also once decided the question of whether a spider was an insect or not. They were faced with the task of finding out the origin of some organs found in both spiders and insects.

Malpighian vessels are excretory organs that characterize both spiders and insects. However, it is believed that during evolution these organs developed independently of each other, that this is a convergent similarity. Malpighian vessels are numerous tubes. They blindly end in the body cavity of the arthropod, and exit through a hole into the intestine. Unnecessary substances are filtered into tubes from the hemolymph and released into the environment.

The presence of a tracheal respiratory system in spiders and insects is also considered convergence. Thus, the decision of convergent similarity only supported the inclusion of spiders and insects in different classes.

Schoolchildren and biology lovers ask the question: “Is a spider an insect or not?” Indeed, their small size and some similarity in structure make them similar to them. However, there are enough differences to classify spiders into a different class.

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Not only inquisitive schoolchildren, but also many adults are interested in the question: is a spider an insect or not? Indeed, at first glance it may seem that the answer is obvious, and spiders are one of the types of insects, but this is not so. They belong to a separate class of arachnids, because they have many differences with insects.

Spiders appeared on our planet a very long time ago, about 400 million years ago. It is believed that they descended from a crab-shaped ancestor. Insects appeared almost 100 million years later and created a separate class. Today, about 40 thousand species of arachnids live on earth. If we look at the anatomy of these creatures in detail, then questions like “Is a spider an insect or not?” should not arise. Everyone knows that insects have six legs, but arachnids have eight, and they also have eight eyes, only some species have six or two. These creatures do not have teeth, but they have hook-shaped jaws with special channels designed to penetrate the poison into the body of the victim.

Doubts about whether a spider is an insect or not will immediately disappear if you consider how it feeds. While praying mantises eat captured flies, arachnids cannot do this because they have extraintestinal digestion. They inject digestive enzymes into the victim, which turn the insect into soup, and the spiders can only suck out the contents of the shell.

Many creatures know how to spin a web, but for them it will not be as strong and elastic as the trap for victims that the spider prepares. Reproduction also forces these creatures to weave special cocoons to preserve clutches of eggs and small spiders. If you compare a web with steel, the first will be five times stronger than the second, and the threads as thick as a pencil cannot be broken by a plane crashing into the network.

It is not clear why many people ponder the question of whether a spider is an insect or not: there are a significant number of differences between the two classes. The body of these creatures is divided not into three, but only into two sections: the abdomen and the cephalothorax. They make webs from fluid secreted from warts located at the end of the belly. From this material, spiders build houses for themselves, make flying carpets on which they travel long distances, weave cocoons for eggs, and hunt insects with nets.

These creatures move quite nimbly through their webs, while mosquitoes, flies and other unfortunate creatures simply stick to it. The fact is that spiders weave sticky and non-sticky threads, the former are needed to catch prey, and they move along the latter. Even if they accidentally fall on the sticky part, they will not get confused, since their body is coated with fat.

Modern science has already given an exact answer to the question: “Is a spider an insect or not?”, identifying these creatures as a separate class. In central Russia there are no arachnids that are dangerous to human life, although it is necessary to behave carefully with them. A spider will never attack first; it only defends itself or bites when frightened. The bite can only be accompanied by a burning sensation, severe pain and an increase in temperature. But there are also dangerous representatives of this species: the most famous are the tarantula and the karakurt. Their bite causes general poisoning of the body, which sometimes leads to death.

In our article we want to talk about spiders. They scare people with their many paws and eyes. True, some still dare to keep them at home as a pet. However, scientists believe that there are enough Interesting Facts about spiders. In general, they are charming and amazing creatures.

Our attitude towards spiders

There are more than forty thousand different spiders in the world. Some of them live next to us in our homes. And we don’t really know anything about these creatures. Of course, their appearance is not very attractive, but most of them do not deserve such a disdainful attitude towards them. They are completely safe for humans, and therefore you should not be afraid of them. Although there are also poisonous species in the world, the bite of which is very dangerous for humans.

So, we want to tell you very interesting facts about these creatures that you probably don’t know.

1. Spiders are useful. Only one such creature kills about two thousand harmful insects per year that fall into its network. Spiders mainly feed on flies and mosquitoes. We can say that they make a significant contribution to the fight against harmful insects.

2. In Italy in the 15th and 16th centuries, there was a belief that a person who was bitten by a tarantula was seized with madness. This type of spider lives exclusively in the south of the country. However, later scientists came to the conclusion that the tarantula is completely safe. But the tarantula is a truly poisonous and dangerous creature. However, it lives in completely different regions.

3. The largest spider in the world is the goliath. Imagine that it can reach thirty centimeters. It catches and eats birds, although it can also feast on amphibians, rodents, insects, and snakes. Villi are therefore dangerous for people. But their poison is not fatal.

4. There is only one spider in the world - a vegetarian. This is Kipling's Bagheera (that's what this species is called). The jumping spider eats plant leaves, and is especially fond of acacia. Sometimes it can eat ant larvae, but this happens extremely rarely.

5. Spiders live all over the world. They just don’t live in the cold of Antarctica. This is due to very low temperatures. There are only spider crabs that are not classified as arachnids. But the Arctic is inhabited by more than 1000 species of these creatures.

6. Everyone knows that spiders spin thread. However, not everyone knows that this thread is different in different species. The strongest silk thread is spun by Darwin's spider. It is so strong that it surpasses the strength of the material from which body armor is made.

7. The most poisonous is the banana spider, which is dangerous to humans. Its poison paralyzes muscles and respiratory system. However, it does not always inject poison during a bite.

8. Spiders lay several thousand eggs at a time. However, not all newborn babies survive to adulthood. So, from a hundred eggs only one spider will grow.

Amazing Spider Abilities

The harvestmen that we often meet are very similar in appearance to arachnids, but they are not classified as arachnids.

Some species of spiders can jump very well. The distances they cover are impressive. During the jump, they still have time to unfurl their silk thread, which gives them the opportunity to land accurately.

There are water spiders in the world. They can also live underwater. To stay there, the spider forms an air bubble around itself, which allows it to breathe. It should be noted that it is very poisonous. But, fortunately, it rarely occurs, and therefore does not represent real threat for a person.

Discussing interesting facts about spiders, I would like to say that they have a very special blood, which turns blue in air. It is absolutely different from the blood of animals and people. In fact, spiders don't have circulatory system and shelter in the usual sense. They have hemolymph, which provides communication between various organs. So, the main substance of hemolymph is copper, which is why copper particles oxidize in air and give such a blue color.

Are spiders edible?

Some arachnids are edible. In Asia they are cooked and eaten. You can easily buy them at a restaurant or market. In Cambodia, for example, fried spider is considered a delicacy. They are served as a delicacy, because under the crust there is delicious meat.

Should you be afraid of spiders or turn it into a pet?

Sometimes spiders are kept in the house as pets. Some varieties are quite large in size and are capable of developing a decent speed of movement. Imagine that such a creature overcomes more than half a meter per second. This is just fantastic!

So what should we do? Should we be afraid of spiders or should we just overcome our disgust and treat them with due respect?

Scientists have long established that people are obsessed with fear of arachnids.

Arachnophobia is a strange thing, but up to six percent of the human population is susceptible to such fear. Even regular photography spider can cause panic and hysteria in people, and rapid heartbeat.

These are the ones who say that you shouldn’t be afraid of them. Rather, these creatures have more reason to fear humans.

Serebryanka

We have already mentioned the water spider earlier - this is the silverback spider. Interesting facts are associated with his lifestyle. Agree that not every living creature will adapt to living under water. Moreover, he builds his own house for himself, weaving a dome from threads. He himself fills it with air in a very interesting way.

The spider has eight eyes, but has poor vision. Therefore, the fibers on the paws are used for it. With their help, he gets his food. Although he cannot see, he perfectly feels all the vibrations. As soon as some crustacean gets into his net, he immediately rushes at it and takes it with him to his home. There he eats it.

Cross spider: interesting facts

The cross spider got its name due to the fact that on its back there are peculiar spots in the form of a cross. This creature is extremely dangerous and poisonous. His bite without immediate medical care can lead to the most irreparable consequences for a person’s life.

Listing interesting facts about spiders, I would like to note that they are all creatures of different sexes. As for the cross, the male dies after mating. But the female begins to prepare for the appearance of offspring. She weaves a cocoon, which she first carries on her back and then hides in a secluded place. Her offspring are there.

At the beginning of life, males actively weave webs for food, and by the mating period they begin to roam in search of a mate. That's why they lose weight. In general, females perceive them as potential prey and may well snack on them.

On the one hand, the cross is extremely dangerous for humans due to its poison. But, on the other hand, there are benefits brought by these creatures. For example, its web has an antibacterial effect and is used to treat and disinfect wounds.

In addition, cobwebs are used in optical instruments high precision. These are the interesting facts about spiders you can learn when you start studying these small, sometimes dangerous, and sometimes very useful creatures.

Tarantula spider

The tarantula spider is currently exotic pet, which has become fashionable to keep at home. He comes from South America. Completely non-aggressive and quite slow. What interesting facts about the tarantula spider are known?

It must be said that the males of this species live only about three years, but the females are much longer, about twelve. The tarantula has a menacing appearance, but its poison is not very dangerous to humans. It can be compared to a bee sting.

Living in wildlife, it feeds on lizards and birds. If he has eaten heavily, he may not appear from the hole for a very long time. They say that in captivity a spider may not eat for a whole year. But this does not affect his health in any way. This behavior is inherent in nature.

Now this variety has become popular for home care. But in captivity, spiders do not reproduce well. Therefore, they are caught in the wild. The maximum lifespan of a tarantula is thirty years! This is amazing. These are some interesting facts about spiders for children that can be given when starting to study arachnids.

I must say that this type very big. Sometimes it can reach thirty centimeters in diameter. This is essentially the size of a dinner plate. Their weight does not exceed one hundred grams.

If the spider senses danger, it begins to make menacing sounds like hissing. In this way he warns his enemies.

As a defense, it can throw small fibers into the air. When they get on the body, they cause irritation and itching.

Instead of an afterword

In our article we tried to present the most interesting facts about spiders. Of course, these are very interesting creatures and there is a lot to talk about. The main thing is that you shouldn’t be afraid of them. Yes, some species are poisonous and dangerous, but there are not many of them. And in general, it’s quite possible to get along with spiders.

The first spiders appeared about 400 million years ago. They descended from a crab-shaped ancestor. Today there are more than 40 thousand species of spiders.

Many people are sure that spiders are insects. In fact, spiders are a separate order and class - arachnids (Arachnida, subphylum Chelicerata - Chelicerata, phylum Arthropods). Noticeably different from insects.

First of all, it is worth noting that spiders have not 6 legs, but 8. In front there are special limbs with poisonous claws - chelicerae. However, in Middle lane Russia has not registered the presence of deadly substances for people. From the bite big spider You can only feel a burning sensation, fever and pain. Spiders will not attack first. If a small spider accidentally falls from the web onto a person, you should carefully blow it away and not hit it - otherwise it may get scared and bite.

Spiders usually have three pairs of arachnoid warts on their abdomen. Digestion in these arthropods is extraintestinal. Unlike, for example, predatory mantises, which chew a caught fly with appetite, the spider injects digestive enzymes into it, turning the insect into “soup” after a few hours, after which it sucks out the contents. Spiders have very strong webs; if a plane hits a pencil-thin web, it will not break.

Spiders usually have 8 eyes, sometimes 6, or very rarely – 2. Males have bulbs on their forelimbs into which he deposits sperm to fertilize the female. Some males are already prepared for death after mating - they allow the female to eat them, others intend to fight for their lives and try to escape. In any case, males do not live long, but females need to raise offspring, so they live longer. Males are smaller, females are huge. Many females are caring mothers. They weave a ball-cocoon from a web and carry spiderlings in it.

Almost all spiders are predators. An exception is the Kipling's bagheera spider (Bagheera kiplingi). Biologists discovered this jumping spider in the forests of Central America, on the branches of an acacia tree. Spiders live on acacia trees along with ants. Ants protect these trees for the nutritional Belt bodies (named after the naturalist Thomas Belt) - sweet shoots at the ends of the leaves. tropical species acacia Spiders also feed on these formations.

The first thing that catches your eye when meeting you is– their long, constantly moving whiskers (antennas). Spiders don't have antennas. Their eyes are also simpler, but there are many of them - most often eight. The body is covered by an external skeleton (exoskeleton). It consists of a cephalothorax and abdomen, connected to each other by a stalk.

Spiders in Latin are Araneae, Aranei. They belong to the animal kingdom, the phylum of arthropods, the class of arachnids. There are 42 thousand modern and about 1.1 thousand fossils in the world. Distributed everywhere, inhabiting almost all continents globe. Obligate carnivores - feed on insects, small animals, and amphibians. An exception is Bagheera kiplingi, whose diet consists of the green part of the acacia tree. On Russian territory, former countries The CIS is home to 2888 species. The science of spiders is called arachnology.

What kingdom do spiders belong to?

Small creatures often found in the wild own home, apartment, attic, outbuildings, they resemble all sorts of insects and beetles. Spiders and insects are often combined into one family due to their small size and similar lifestyle. However, in tropical countries. where arthropods up to 35 cm in size live, such associations practically do not arise.

There are 5 kingdoms in total - animals, plants, fungi, bacteria and viruses. Historically, spiders and insects belong to the same kingdom, phylum - animals, arthropods. Only the class or squad is different. Therefore, the question of whether a spider is an animal or an insect is fundamentally wrong. The animal is a kingdom, insects are a class.

On a note!

Since everyone has long been accustomed to the fact that insects are insects, and animals are full-fledged mammals, there is confusion in the concepts ordinary people. Why the spider stands apart is explained by its unusual lifestyle and small size. In order not to seem uneducated, you need to clearly understand that a spider is not an insect.

What class do spiders belong to?

In this case, there is no confusion in concepts, since the class has a consonant name - arachnids. A total of 42 thousand are known. modern species, 1.1 thousand fossils. In all animals, the body is divided into 2 parts - the abdomen and cephalothorax.

Main external difference from insects is - 8 legs instead of 6. Arachnids also have chelicerae located in front of the cephalothorax, pelipalps, similar to tentacles. They are located on the sides, slightly different in length from the forelimbs, and perform similar functions - they help move, hold the prey.

On a note!

The question is often asked - which family do spiders belong to, which group of animals. These are arachnids and arthropods.

Species and orders

It is very simple to answer the question of which order spiders belong to. To the order with the same name - spiders. They stand apart. They differ from other animals in their lifestyle, size, reproduction, and nutrition. There are differences among themselves in the same family, depending on what species the spiders belong to.

General characteristics:

• The body consists of 2 parts - the cephalothorax, the abdomen is oval, round in shape.
• There are only 4 pairs of legs, a pair of chelicerae, and pelipalps.
• There are no antennae, but the forelimbs can be claw-shaped and end in claws.
• Distinguishes arachnids from insects. Not everyone weaves fishing nets, but they use threads own production for cocoon formation, downward movement, long-distance migration.
• Predators have poisonous glands that paralyze the prey. They turn the insides into a liquid mass.
• Unlike insects, they rarely live in pairs or in large families. All spiders lead single image life. In some species, young spiders live with their mother until they get stronger. Almost all females eat males after fertilization or in the near future.

Arachnids live everywhere, some of them live in human apartments and utility rooms. Exotic, kept as a pet.

Spider (lat. Araneae) belongs to the phylum arthropod, class Arachnida, order Spiders. Their first representatives appeared on the planet approximately 400 million years ago.

Spider - description, characteristics and photographs.

The body of arachnids consists of two parts:

• The cephalothorax is covered with a shell of chitin, with four pairs of long jointed legs. In addition to them, there is a pair of claws (pedipalps), used by mature individuals for mating, and a pair of short limbs with poisonous hooks - chelicerae. They are part of the oral apparatus. The number of eyes in spiders ranges from 2 to 8.
• Abdomen with breathing holes located on it and six arachnoid warts for weaving webs.

The size of spiders, depending on the species, ranges from 0.4 mm to 10 cm, and the span of their limbs can exceed 25 cm.

Coloring and pattern on individuals different types depends on structural structure covers of scales and hairs, as well as the presence and localization of various pigments. Therefore, spiders can have both dull, monochromatic and bright colors of various shades.

Types of spiders, names and photographs.

Scientists have described more than 42,000 species of spiders. About 2,900 varieties are known in the CIS countries. Let's consider several varieties:

Blue-green tarantula (lat. Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens)– one of the most spectacular and beautifully colored spiders. The tarantula's abdomen is red-orange, its limbs are bright blue, and its carapace is green. The size of the tarantula is 6-7 cm, with a leg span of up to 15 cm. The spider’s homeland is Venezuela, but this spider is found in Asian countries and in African continent. Despite belonging to tarantulas, this type of spider does not bite, but only throws special hairs located on the abdomen, and only in case of severe danger. The hairs are not dangerous for humans, but they cause minor burns on the skin, similar in effect to nettle burns. Surprisingly, female chromatopelma are long-lived compared to males: the lifespan of a female spider is 10-12 years, while males live only 2-3 years.

Flower spider (lat. Misumena vatia) belongs to the family of side-walking spiders (Thomisidae). Color varies from absolutely white to bright lemon, pink or greenish. Male spiders are small, 4-5 mm long, females reach sizes of 1-1.2 cm. Species flower spiders distributed throughout European territory (excluding Iceland), found in the USA, Japan, and Alaska. The spider lives in open areas with an abundance of flowering herbs, as it feeds on the juices of those caught in its “embraces” and.

Grammostola pulchra (lat. Grammostola Pulchra)- a variety that is natural environment lives only in Uruguay and southern regions Brazil. A rather massive spider, reaching a size of 8-11 cm, with a dark color and a characteristic “metallic” sheen of hairs. In nature, it prefers to live among the roots of plants, but almost never digs its own burrows. Pulhra often becomes a pet among connoisseurs of exotic pets.

Argiope Brünnich or wasp spider (lat. Argiope bruennichi) – a spider with an unusual coloring of the body and limbs - yellow, black and white stripes, for which it received its name. True, the male wasp spiders are not so bright, and they are smaller in size than the females: the “young ladies” reach a size of 2.5 cm, and together with the legs - 4 cm, but the male rarely grows more than 7 mm in length. The species is widespread in Europe, Asia and southern Russia, in the Volga region and in North Africa. The Argiope spider lives in meadows with an abundance of grass, on the edges of forests. The web of the argiope is very strong, so it is difficult to tear it, it will only stretch under pressure.

Hunter bordered (lat. Dolomedes fimbriatus) widespread on the Eurasian continent and occurs along the shores of bodies of water with standing or very slow flowing water. Often settles in marshy meadows, shady forests or gardens with high humidity. The body length of the female edge hunter varies from 14 to 22 mm, the male is smaller and rarely larger than 13 mm. The color of spiders of this species is usually yellowish-brown or almost black, with light yellow or white stripes on the sides of the abdomen.

(lat. Lycosa tarantula)- a species of spider belonging to the family of wolf spiders (lat. Lycosidae). Lives in the open spaces Southern Europe: often found in Italy and Spain, digs burrows half a meter deep in Portugal. The size of the tarantula is impressive - up to 7 cm in length, individuals are usually colored red, less often - brown, with several transverse stripes on the body light color and one longitudinal.

Spiny orb-weaving spider or " horned spider» (lat. Gasteracantha cancriformis) distributed in the tropics and subtropics, in the southern part of the USA, in Central America, in the Philippines, in Australia. The size of the female is 5-9 mm, the width reaches 10-13 mm. Males are 2-3 mm long. The legs of the spiny spider are short, and there are 6 spines along the edges of the abdomen. The color of the spider is very bright: white, yellow, red, black. On the abdomen there is a pattern of black dots.

Peacock spider(lat. Maratus volans). The color of this spider comes in all sorts of colors: red, blue, light blue, green, yellow. The coloring of females is paler. An adult reaches a size of 4-5 mm. Males attract females with their beautiful outfit. The peacock spider lives in Australia - in Queensland and New South Wales.

Smiling spider (lat. Theridion grallator) or a spider with a happy face is completely harmless to humans. This unusual spider lives on Hawaiian Islands. Its body length is 5 mm. The color of the spider can be varied - pale, yellow, orange, blue. This species feeds on small fish, and the bright coloring of the individual helps confuse enemies, especially birds.

Black Widow (lat. Latrodectus mactans)- it is very dangerous and poisonous species spiders Lives in Australia North America, and is also found in Russia. The size of females reaches 1 cm, males are much smaller. The body of the black widow is black, and on the abdomen there is a characteristic red spot in the shape of an hourglass. Males are brown with white stripes. The bite is deadly.

Karakurt (lat. Latrodectus tredecimguttatus)- this look is deadly poisonous spiders from a family of black widows. The female karakurt has a size of 10-20 mm, the male is much smaller and has a size of 4-7 mm. There are 13 red spots on the abdomen of this scary spider. In some varieties, the spots have borders. Some mature individuals are devoid of spots and have a completely black shiny body. Lives in Kyrgyzstan, in the Astrakhan region, in the countries Central Asia, in the south of Russia, Ukraine, in the Black Sea and Azov regions, in the south of Europe, in North Africa. Karakurt was also seen in Saratov region, Volgograd region, Orenburg region, Kurgan region, in the south of the Urals.

Spiders live everywhere and are distributed in all corners of the globe. They do not live only in areas where the surface of the earth all year round hidden under an ice shell. The number of species in countries with humid and hot climates is greater than in temperate or cold ones. With the exception of a few species, spiders are ground dwellers and live in built nests or burrows, being active at night.

Tarantula spiders and other species of mygalomorph spiders live in the crowns of equatorial trees and shrubs. “Drought-resistant” species of spiders prefer burrows, ground crevices and any shelter at ground level. For example, digger spiders (atypical tarantulas) live in colonies, settled in individual burrows located at a depth of up to 50 cm. Some species of mygalomorphic spiders close their burrows with special flaps made of soil, vegetation and silk.

Sidewalk spiders (crab spiders) most They spend their lives sitting on flowers waiting for prey, although some members of the family can be found on the bark of trees or the forest floor.

Representatives of the family of funnel-web spiders place their webs on tall grass and bush branches.

Wolf spiders prefer damp, grassy meadows and swampy wooded area, where they are found in abundance among fallen leaves.

The water (silver) spider builds a nest underwater, attaching it to various bottom objects with the help of webs. He fills his nest with oxygen and uses it as a diving bell.

What do spiders eat?

Spiders are quite original creatures that eat very interestingly. Some types of spiders may not eat for a long time - from a week to a month or even a year, but if they start, there will be little left. Interestingly, the weight of food that all spiders can eat during the year is several times greater than the weight of the entire population living on the planet today.
How and what do spiders eat? Depending on the species and size, spiders forage and eat differently. Some spiders weave webs, thereby organizing clever traps that are very difficult for insects to notice. Digestive juice is injected into the caught prey, corroding it from the inside. After some time, the “hunter” draws the resulting “cocktail” into his stomach. Other spiders, while hunting, “spit” sticky saliva, thereby attracting prey to themselves - beetles and orthoptera, and some species are able to drag them into their home or earthworm and eat them there in peace.
The queen spider hunts only at night, creating a sticky web bait for unwary moths. Noticing an insect next to the bait, the queen spinner quickly swings the thread with her paws, thereby attracting the attention of the prey. The moth happily hovers around such a bait, and having touched it, it immediately remains hanging on it. As a result, the spider can calmly attract it to itself and enjoy its prey.

Large tropical tarantula spiders happily hunt small frogs

Aquatic species of spiders get their food from the water, using their webs to catch tadpoles, small fish or midges floating on the surface of the water. Some spiders, which are predators, due to the lack of victims, can get enough and plant foods, which can include pollen or plant leaves. Haymaking spiders prefer cereal grains.

Judging by numerous notes from scientists, great amount Spiders destroy small rodents and insects several times more than animals living on the planet.

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How does a spider weave a web?

In the back of the spider's abdomen there are from 1 to 4 pairs of arachnoid glands (arachnoid warts), from which a thin thread of web stands out. This is a special secret, which today many call liquid silk. Coming out of thin spinning tubes, it hardens in air, and the resulting thread turns out to be so thin that it is quite difficult to see with the naked eye.

In order to weave a web, the spider spreads its spinning organs, and then waits for a light breeze so that the spun web catches on a nearby support. After this happens, he moves along the newly created bridge with his back down and begins to weave a radial thread. When the base is created, the spider moves in a circle, weaving thin transverse threads into its “product”, which are quite sticky.

It is worth noting that spiders are quite economical creatures, so they absorb damaged or old webs, after which they reuse them. And the web becomes old very quickly, since the spider weaves it almost every day.