Before you head out to the American Museum of Natural History to see the 16 species featured in Spiders Alive! here are 8 arachnid facts to end your arachnophobia:
- Spiders evolved more than 300 million years ago, long before dinosaurs walked the Earth, although spider fossil are very rare. Spiders do not preserve well in sediment because they have a relatively soft “shell” or exoskeleton. For every 1,000 or so insect fossils found, there’s only one spider.
- Nearly all spiders have eight simple eyes—consisting of one lens and a retina—arranged in different ways. But, for the most part, they don’t see very well. In most cases, spiders use other senses, like touch and smell, to help capture prey.
- Only about 50 percent of known spider species make webs. Others hunt their prey or burrow underground and one species, Argyroneta aquatica, lives underwater.
- One of the biggest spiders in the world, the goliath bird eater preys on snakes, mice, and frogs but, despite the name, rarely birds. When threatened, it may take a defensive pose—raising its front legs and displaying fangs.