Spiders have always given me shudders. Though I wouldn’t go so far to say I have arachnophobia, the mere thought of an eight-legged, eight-eyed arachnid is enough to send me into a good case of the heebie-jeebies.
That being said, since I’ve gotten into macro photography, it’s given me a totally different look into the world of spiders. Their silken webs appear as thick threads in my camera lens, whereas the tiny arachnids are transformed into magical web-weavers, beautifully detailed and delicate. Even my fear of them fades away when I see them up close.
Wow Hazel, it’s inspiring that you open yourself to seeing the ‘beauty’ of spiders up close, and sharing those portraits. I love the tiniest spider on a web between moss capsules picture!
Thanks Mom! I have to say, I, too, was a bit surprised at writing “beauty” and “spiders” in the same sentence, but it’s not a bad thing I suppose.
Did you know? Hundreds of years ago, people put spider webs on their wounds because they believed it would help stop the bleeding. Scientists now know that the silk contains vitamin K, which helps reduce bleeding. Or. Spiders have blue blood. In humans, oxygen is bound to hemoglobin, a molecule that contains iron and gives blood its red color. In spiders, oxygen is bound to hemocyanin, a molecule that contains copper rather than iron. Or, Spiders are vital to a healthy ecosystem. They eat harmful insects, pollinate plants, and recycle dead animal and plants back into the earth. They are also a valuable food source for many small mammals, birds, and fish. And. Spiders eat more insects than birds and bats combined! Thanks for bringing my attention to a species that also give me “heebie =jeebies” and I had no idea of their importance for a balanced ecosystem.
Thanks for all these interesting facts! I do like the spiderweb-on-the-wound one.