A spate of huntsman spider infestations reported in Sydney this week may be in response to recent changes in the weather, according to a renowned arachnologist at Queensland Museum.
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Dr Raven said the infestations may be more than a coincidence after Sydney experienced a heatwave followed by rain this week.
“Spiders go looking for milder environments in terms of heat and humidity. So inside a house it’s usually good. There’s usually some water around and they’ll gravitate to that,” he said.
“We generate these wonderful situations which emulate what they find in the bush — hanging paintings on walls, absolutely fantastic. Great, narrow spaces for them.
“What we call houses, they call caves.”
But there’s more to the infestations than just spiders sheltering from bad weather.
Late on Tuesday in Sydney, a trough of low air pressure passed over the city after days of heat.
What followed was rain that raised the humidity considerably.
“Low pressure is one of the triggers for emergence from the egg sac,” Dr Raven said.
“Low pressure is, of course, associated with high humidity. And that makes a very buffered environment for the young ones.
“The little babies, they’ve got very thin cuticles, or skins. And they can dehydrate very, very easily.
Sure. Just for you, PZ:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-01-30/huntsman-spider-home-invasions-driven-by-weather/13104560
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https://www.arkinspace.com/2011/05/spiders-that-decorate-their-own-webs.html The Ark in Space yesterday