Arachnids are a class (Arachnida) of chelicerate arthropods studied across zoology, ecology, and evolutionary biology as a diverse group that includes spiders, scorpions, mites, ticks, harvestmen, and related lineages. Research on arachnids focuses on their morphological specializations (e.g., chelicerae, pedipalps, spinnerets in spiders, pectines in scorpions), respiratory structures (book lungs, tracheae), and reproductive and developmental strategies. They serve as key models in venom biochemistry, neurobiology, sensory ecology, and biomechanics, and several groups (notably ticks and mites) are of major importance in medical and agricultural entomology as vectors, parasites, and bioindicators within terrestrial and, to a lesser extent, freshwater ecosystems.
Male nursery web spiders (Pisaura mirabilis) use the sense of smell in their legs to find mates. Researchers at the University of Greifswald used an electron microscope to discover "olfactory hairs" on the legs of adult males. ...
Plants & Animals
Dec 3, 2025
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Spiders of the Clubiona genus, which are among the most important natural enemies of pests found in orchards, are active during the winter. New research in The FEBS Journal reveals the characteristics of antifreeze proteins ...
Plants & Animals
Nov 19, 2025
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In research published in Insect Conservation and Diversity, investigators analyzed records from social media to explore which arthropods—including insects and spiders—are most preyed upon by domestic cats in urban environments.
Plants & Animals
Nov 19, 2025
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What is thought to be the world's largest-known spider's web, housing tens of thousands of arachnids, has been discovered in a cave on the Albanian-Greek border.
Plants & Animals
Nov 14, 2025
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Researchers may have discovered the world's biggest spider web, a massive subterranean structure spanning over 100 square meters in a sulfur cave on the Albania–Greece border. The multilayered web along a wall near the cave ...
Different species of spiders produce different silks that serve different purposes, from floating on air to cradling eggs. The triangle weaver spider, Hyptiotes cavatus, weaves and holds a three-sided web under tension, which ...
Plants & Animals
Nov 4, 2025
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If you're scared of spiders, Halloween certainly doesn't help. People decorate their homes with monstrous-looking fake cobwebs and horror movies depict giant spiders hunting humans or creeping around spooky abandoned houses. ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 31, 2025
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The long-standing mystery around why spider webs sometimes feature "extra touches" known as stabilimenta has been revisited in a new study which suggests that their wave-propagation effects could help spiders locate captured ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 29, 2025
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Scientists at the University of California, Davis, have discovered a new species of trapdoor spider lurking in California's coastal sand dunes. The newly identified Aptostichus ramirezae is a close relative of Aptostichus ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 29, 2025
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A research team including a Keele University scientist have made a breakthrough in monitoring insect populations across the UK using weather radar data. Traditionally used to track rainfall and storms, these radars are now ...
Plants & Animals
Oct 27, 2025
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