Les Araignées - Documentaire Animalier

Spiders, like snakes, owls, and toads, are among the animals that aren't exactly public favorites. However, they all have a role to play in nature, and that of spiders is no small one, as they are carnivores and prey on all sorts of insects. Their hunting equipment is quite comprehensive and includes, first and foremost, a pair of fangs that they use to bite and poison their prey, much like vipers. Then there are their eyes. Spiders generally have eight, located at the front of their bodies. Needless to say, their eyesight is often very good, at least for primitive animals! This is particularly true of the very small spiders known as saltis. Their two large main eyes give them a very expressive face, which makes them almost endearing. Finally, and this is very important, spiders produce silk. To achieve this, they have specialized glands at the rear of their bodies that produce threads of varying qualities, depending on their intended use. Silk serves a variety of purposes: locomotion, hiding, building their cocoons, and, of course, weaving their webs. In each spider species, web construction follows a very specific technique. For this one, for example, the first step involves creating a frame, a structure that it securely attaches to the vegetation in its chosen location. Then, the spider extends several rays, from the outside towards the center of the web, and then from the center outwards, repeating this process several times. Once all the rays are extended, the spider begins to attach a spiral of silk threads to them. This silk is slightly different from that used for the frame and the web's rays, as it's coated with a sticky, gooey substance that will later immobilize any insects that get caught in it. An hour after construction begins, the web is finished, ready to act as a trap, and our spider settles in comfortably, awaiting its first victim. Of course, there are other types of webs, in different shapes and sizes, built in grass, foliage, or even directly on the ground like this one. Spiders all use them in roughly the same way: they position themselves on the web either in the center or at the edges and detect the arrival of prey by placing their legs on the silk thread. The slightest vibration of the web caused by an insect being caught is registered. The spider immediately pounces, bites, and injects its venom, which often has a devastating effect. Next, the victim is quickly and neatly wrapped in a silk cocoon. It will be eaten later when the appetite strikes... Hunting with a web is ultimately quite easy, but you still need to know how to weave... Not all spiders possess this skill; for example, the tomis family uses a completely different technique: they hunt by lying in wait in the vegetation, often adopting its color. Then, as soon as prey comes within reach, they literally pounce and bite it. But here, there's no sticky web to prevent the victim from defending itself, no silk to swaddle and immobilize it in a cocoon, and the situation is far from easy... That said, these spiders are fearless and know how to take advantage of the element of surprise to attack and subdue prey much larger than themselves... Spiders mate during the warmer months. They then lay their eggs in silk cocoons, which some species carry with them almost everywhere they travel, ensuring their protection. Then, when the time for hatching approaches, the mother spider places the cocoon in a small web, a kind of nursery, in which the young spiders take their first steps. There are often several hundred of them, which will disperse after a few days to live their lives as spiders on their own.