THEME: Creepy Crawlies
SUBJECT AREA: Science
TOPIC: SPIDERS!
This morning, while I was packing up my swag, or sleeping gear, I heard a shriek from Mike’s tent. Jason and I went over to see what was up, and Mike told us that a spider had just fallen out of his sock while he was putting on his shoes. It was a Tarantula spider about the size of the palm of one’s hand. The story, being told to the rest of the group, was of a 10-pound spider the size of a small dog! Could you imagine a spider that size?!
Here are some neat factoids about spiders:
- All have eight legs.
- Insects have six legs. That is one way to differentiate a spider from an insect.
- Some spiders here in Australia can become as big as a mouse! (And as hairy!)
- Most spiders feed on solely on ants. There are more than 200 species of ants in Australia!
- Spiders forage for their food mostly at night. Some hide in their borrows waiting for prey to come along.
- All spiders are carnivorous, meaning they only eat meat.
- Sheet flooding, where water flows like a sheet over the desert is the greatest hazard to spiders living in their burrows. Many spiders build trapdoors similar to a plug used in your bathtub to keep the water out.
- Many spiders’ venoms are poisonous, so you should be very careful and aware of them!
Every morning before I get up I check my shoes and see if any ‘little dude’ has made a home in them! I’ve been fortunate to see a few, but none as big as Mike’s this morning!
*By Crister
Suggested Activities:
-Can you find any other neat info about spiders?
-Just like snakes, spiders are usually killed when discovered by humans. Can you think of the reasons why this happens?
-Find a spider’s web and make a list of any prey caught.