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- Research finds out the explanation regarding the “flying” spiders
- “Flying” spiders can glide in the air due to its natural electric charge
A phenomenon of “flying” spiders, gliding in the air like paper airplanes when falling may have scientific explanation now.
It may be because of the air’s natural electric charge.
The “ballooning” of the aerial spiders have been observed since long ago. It was notably studied by Charles Darwin, who also documented his findings in his diary back in the 19th century.
One hypothesis that was suggested is that the spiders weave very fine think silk threads that catch in the wind and whisk them aloft that even sometimes can carry them away over great distances and high altitudes. But that doesn’t explain how spiders take flight on rainy or non-windy days with low aerodynamic drag.
Another possible explanation is the atmosphere’s static electricity, which is the same one that bristles the hair after a balloon is rubbed on a wool surface. The researchers at Britain’s Bristol University conducted a research regarding the hypothesis.
Their findings were published last July 5 in the Current Biology journal. It states how they set up a box to create an atmosphere isolated from the ambient air thus without the electric field present on the planet. They have also manufactured and set up their own field which the scientists could turn on and off.
Inside they placed a small Erigone spider — a type lead author Erica Morley described as “frequent astronauts.”
They then found out that when the field is switched on, the spider points its abdomen in the air, which releases a long strand of sild and zipped into the air. And when it was off, the spider keeps its legs on the ground.
The researchers concluded that electrostatic forces are enough to make spiders fly — but the arachnids probably use both methods at once.
Though they have made a significant discovery, they admitted that there’s still much to be explored on the topic.
Study authors said there is still much to be explored on the topic, including on the physical properties of spider silk.
