When spiders go in the air, it's electric – literally

Science



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Thursday, July 5, 2018

Nell Greenfieldboyce / NPR

Photo caption: "title =" Caption of the photo: "/> </div> </div> <p> Many spiders fly long distances riding silk "balloons", and a new study suggests that they are propelled by more than the wind. </p> <p> Electric force fields found in nature can also trigger spider swelling. behavior. And electrostatic forces can lift spiders even when the air is still, according to the newly published report in the journal <em> Current Biology </em>. </p> <p> Rising spiders have long fascinated scientists because they fly high – they have been found more than two miles to – and far. These spiders land on ships in the middle of the ocean, and they are often the first colonizers of new volcanic islands, says Erica Morley of Bristol University. </p> <p> "Although they do not have wings, they are actually good enough to fly," Morley says. She explains that a spider will go to a high branch on a tree or at the top of a large grass, and will stand on tiptoe with the abdomen pointed up. He then releases long silk strands and flies up in the air. </p> <p> Curiously, says Morley, spiders only swell when the winds are very low, like a light breeze. And some larger spiders manage to get up in the air even when it seems like there is not enough wind for this to happen. Scientists are also wondering what triggers mass hot air balloons – when thousands of spiders suddenly take air. </p> <p> All of this suggests that spiders rely on something other than the wind. What's more, the ballooned silk is made of many strands that are released at the same time, "and these sort of out, as if there is a repulsive force present," says Morley. </p> <p> The idea that atmospheric electric fields could affect flying spiders have been around since the 1800s, but until now, there is no evidence that spiders could detect or use. Morley and his colleague Daniel Robert were interested in this after reading a recent article that showed that electrostatic spider flying was theoretically possible. </p> <p> "There was no empirical data to support or dispel this assumption notes </p> <p> They mounted a box with two metal plates, one at the top and one at the bottom The top plate was connected at a voltage, and the bottom plate was electrically grounded. "So between the two plates was an electric field," says Morley. "And the spiders were then put into this electric field, and we could l? turn on and turn off and watch the changes in their behavior. "</p> <p> Spiders reacted when the electric field was turned on. </p> <p> They perform this peak behavior, and try to inflate," says Morley. "I was delighted when I saw them answer, it is very surprising, it takes a lot more investigations." </p> <p> Some spiders have even become airborne in the laboratory. "And you can change their altitude by turning on and off the electric field," Morley adds. "If they manage to take off, and you cut the electric field, they will fall slowly, then you can turn it back on and they will rise again, you will see that this electric field provides enough force to lift it says that there is much more work that needs to be done to see how this is done in a natural environment, and how it relates to their use of the wind. "Wherever there is an electric field in the natural environment of the spider, "she says," there are also probably air movements. "</p> <p> Copyright 2018 NPR For more information, visit http://www.npr.org/. </p> <p class= To view PDF documents, download Acrobat Reader.

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