Spider insects? | AZ Animals

We tend to associate every tiny creature that scares us with a bug or insect. Spiders certainly make it to this list. So much so that there is even a scientific term (not to mention a million films) that reminds us why we should be afraid: arachnophobia.

But are they spiders insects? Read more. We can surprise you with the answer.

Spiders

Classified as arachnids, the creatures belong to the arthropod family. There are over 45,000 known species and they are found all over the world. We most often meet with the common house spider. Other members of the family include ticks, scorpions, and mites. More unique species of these animals include wolf spiders, brown recluses, red widows, and tens of thousands of others.

Here is a list of traits that pretty much apply to all arachnids.

• All spiders have eight legs. Some species use their front legs to mimic antennae, but none of the known species actually have antennae.
• Eight-legged creatures are invertebrates, so they don’t have a backbone.
• Animals have no chewing parts in their mouths.
• Arachnids use their tiny proboscis to suck fluid from their prey.
• They have no wings, although there are species that appear to fly as they can jump or hover.
• Animals weave webs that are used by both habitat and trap.
• Many species of spiders do not weave a web at all. They hunt.
• They are predators.
• The spiders will eat their own silk.
• Creatures use their silk to climb, wrap prey, hold sperm, and create parachutes.
• They have eight eyes, and depending on the species, their location may differ.
• Some cave species have no eyes.

Habits, behavior and diet

Spiders are everywhere, in different sizes, shapes and regions. Each species has unique differences, diets, habits, and behaviors. Without chewing on the mouth, they use the digestive enzymes in saliva to break down food before eating. Spiders eat small amounts because their stomachs are too narrow for large food particles.

All species are carnivores, although several herbivores have been recorded. There is a Central American jumping spider that seems to prefer the tips of acacia leaves. This vegetable is protected by poisonous ants, which also feed on the plant’s nectar.

The creature cautiously approaches the meal, looking out for ants. If the shore is clear, he rushes to the plant, performing some pretty funny acrobatic stunts and zigzags. The creature is also pretty lucky. Ants, known for chasing other animals, never catch a jumping spider.

The Central American jumping spider feeds well on the tip of the leaf, especially during the dry season, when its insect prey is scarce.

In Mexico, the jumping spider is ready to eat both vegetables and meat.

Poison

With the exception of 350 species, all other species possess venom and use fangs to inject it into prey. But of all this, only about 200 species of spiders have venom that threatens human health. Larger species with larger teeth can cause more pain, but will not cause long-term health problems.

The black widow has the most dangerous poison. The pain can last for several days and can be fatal if left untreated. The widow is hourglass shaped and has a red color on the underside of a black belly.

Another poisonous spider that shouldn’t be pissed off is the brown recluse. Their unique feature is the violin-shaped mark on the top of the cephalothorax.

Reproduction

The spider’s life span is divided into three stages: embryonic, larval and nymph-imaginal.

Creatures can use extravagant mating rituals. The exchange helps in identification and gives men permission to approach women without fear of violent reactions. However, after this, the male will have to hurry to leave. Chances are high that the female will eat it. Males are usually smaller than females.

The female lays eggs by wrapping them in silk bundles. These are egg bags. The embryonic stage occurs between fertilization and the spider reaching its adult form. The larval process is the growth and development of its natural appearance. It begins before the larva and becomes a larva as a result of molting. It feeds on yolk.

After several molts, the body structure becomes characteristic. It reaches the nympho-imaginal phase, when its organs are fully formed and the animal can hunt on its own.

The nymph-imaginal stage has its own substages: nymph / juvenile and imago / imago. Spiders cannot reproduce until they reach an imago. This is when the male stops shedding. Some non-araneomorphic females will molt throughout their lives.

Life span

Many outdoor species seek refuge in the cooler months. They can live up to two years or more by hibernating in safe, sheltered areas. But in general, spiders only live for about 12 months.

The female tarantula can live up to 20 years.

Survival mode

The provoked or trapped spider bites every time. There are tarantulas with a spot of hairs on the belly. Contact with these hairs irritates the skin and sometimes causes allergic reactions.

Many species have other unique defense mechanisms. The golden spider in Namibia escapes the predatory tarantula, which is actually a species of wasp, by turning on its side and rolling towards the sunset.

7 fascinating facts about spiders

Here are seven really wonderful and incomprehensible skills that you didn’t know about like arachnids.

1. They can survive underwater.

The diving spider lives in ponds in Asia and Europe. They need air. Arachnids trap air bubbles in their web, which we call the web of a diving bell. The creature lives in the bell, entering the water only for hunting. They move to the surface of the water as needed to replenish the oxygen supply.

2. They “fly”.

Spiders do not have wings, but some can travel hundreds of miles through the air. They do this using silk threads to catch the wind. We call this behavior hot air ballooning or parachuting. Many believe that this skill is associated with the appearance of spiders on ships at sea or in remote regions.

3. They love a good jig

Spiders can dance. With the exception of Antarctica, jumping spiders are everywhere. This is one of the spiders that hunt, not catch. These spiders also love to dance to pretty numbers. This is part of their marriage ritual. The Australian peacock, a member of the jumping spider family, shakes its belly fatally and flaps its leg to get the female’s attention.

4. Spiders don’t have real blood

Spiders are rare creatures that don’t have blood or veins to spread. They have an open circulatory system. The bodies contain hemolymph. It is pumped by the heart into the arteries and through them to areas called the sinuses. These sinuses surround the internal organs.

5. Male spiders: They love to dine.

Red widows eat their mates like the black version. But sometimes the red widow does not want this and receives resistance from the man. He rapes the widow by driving into her lower jaw. A widow can refuse an advance by spitting it out. It will come back again and again until she softens and eats him.

6. Communities

Spiders tend to live alone, but groups often form a community. Colonies can reach thousands on the vast public web. Spiders cooperate in catching prey and share the harvest.

7. They love to fish

A man-eating spider weaves a web between its legs. While waiting in the water, he catches a fish that tries to pass through his legs. Bol spiders actually create a line and swing it to catch the mole.

So … is a spider an insect?

Spiders and insects have the same ancestors, but they do not belong to the same species. So spiders are definitely not insects.

Like insects, arachnids have an exoskeleton and are invertebrates. There are also unique characteristics that set them apart. To begin with, insects belong to the Insecta class, and according to scientific lists, spiders belong to Arachnida.

Spiders have eight legs, two body parts and eight eyes. The abdomen is a single part of the body. The head and chest are fused. Spiders have no distinct antennae or wings.

On the other hand, insects have six legs, two compound eyes, a pair of antennae, and usually four wings. They have three body parts: the head, ribcage, and a segmented abdomen.

Insects have jaws that they use for food. Spiders use their chelicerae to eat.

The insect’s head consists of several parts, including the scape, pedicel, upper lip, clypeus, and forehead.

Arachnids do have more body parts than insects. Unlike spiders, insects do not have a patella, basin, trochanter, or metatarsus.

Each has its own abdominal area. Spiders have spinning machines that they use to make webs. Most insects have a suture, elytra and scutellum on the abdomen. Insect eyes are more complex than those of arachnids.

The insect has antennae and cuticles in spiders. Each of them plays a huge role in how these animals use their senses.

There are many insects flying. Spiders don’t. And insects, of course, don’t weave silk webs.

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