I’m not a lover of spiders, no not at all, but they do have a certain fascination about them and my camera seems to be drawn to them. This particular predator was about to devour his captured prey.

Did You Know… The total weight of all the insects eaten by spiders each year, is more than the weight of the whole human population. Spiders consume more insects than bats and birds combined. Without spiders the insect population on earth would be out of control.

On the basis of equal mass, spider silk is twice as strong as steel. The combination of its strength and elasticity makes it the most resilient material known to man.

In the 1700s a Frenchman, Bon De Saint-Hilaire collected spider silk, boiled, washed, dried and combed it and made it into socks and gloves. However, it would take 0.65 million spider cocoons to produce one pound of silk.

Spiders manufacture natural body oils, which prevent them becoming ensnared in their own web.

Spiders are characterized by an exoskeleton, fangs, two body parts, eight eyes and eight legs with six joints on each leg. Females are six times larger than their male counterparts.

A Dr Mouffet believed spiders had healing powers when eaten, his daughter is said to be Little Miss Muffet written about in the nursery rhyme of the same name.

Exif Data
Focal Length: 4.1mm
Exposure Time: 1/30s
Flash: On
F-Number: F/4.0
ISO: 100
Metering Mode: Matrix
White Balance: Auto