Floating Spiders


Spiders can float in water but it does depend on the species of spider because some species of spider are hairier than others. When spiders float on water, it is called "ballooning" and is thought to have been a migratory strategy. "On October 31, 1832, a young naturalist named Charles Darwin walked onto the deck of the HMS Beagle and realized that the ship had been boarded by thousands of intruders. Tiny red spiders, each a millimeter wide, were everywhere. The ship was 60 miles offshore, so the creatures must have floated over from the Argentinian mainland. “All the ropes were coated and fringed with gossamer web,” Darwin wrote" (Yong). According to the article, some spiders can migrate from place to place. This can be evidence to show how spiders had came to different countries all around the world because spiders are everywhere except Antarctica and that spiders had mysteriously migrated to islands so "ballooning" can be the answer as to how they came to these seemingly impossibly journeys. On water, spiders are very uncomfortable with being in immense bodies of water and that they would only go in if there was a predator chasing them or some other desperate occasion. So according to theory on migration, it would be by accident. If spiders were to escape near death and enter waters with even a slight current, they would be able to migrate easily and fast to another location. Ed Yong also says this in his article, "It is commonly believed that ballooning works because the silk catches on the wind, dragging the spider with it" (Yong). If they used silk to float, that would be even better for their survival while ballooning but there are spiders out there like the tarantula that have weak adhesive bristles (hairs) on their exoskeleton that would allow them to float for a short period of time.






Quote citation: https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/07/the-electric-flight-of-spiders/564437/
tion:

                 Yong, Ed. "Spiders Can Fly Hundreds of Miles Using Electricity - Scientists are finally starting to understand the centuries-old mystery of 'ballooning.'" The Atlantic. 5 July 2018. Web. 13 June 2019.


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