How Spiders Spin Their Webs
Web-spinning is the way a spider builds a silk trap to catch flying and crawling insects for food. The silk is made as a liquid inside silk glands in the spider's abdomen and pushed out through tiny nozzles called spinnerets, where it hardens into thread the moment it meets the air. For its weight, spider silk is remarkably strong — tougher than steel of the same thickness — yet it can stretch like elastic, which is why a struggling insect does not simply tear straight through it.
An orb web is not spun at random but in a set order. The spider first floats a bridge line across a gap and adds a frame, then lays dry, straight spokes that fan out from the middle like the ribs of a wheel. Only after that does it walk the spokes and lay a spiral of sticky silk on top. The spokes stay dry so the spider can move about safely, while the sticky spiral is what actually holds the prey. Learners come away understanding where silk comes from, why it is both strong and stretchy, and the clever build order — frame, spokes, then sticky spiral — that makes the whole trap work.
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Meet the web weaverNature • Mini-engineer 🕷️🕸️ How Spiders Spin Their Webs A spider has no ruler, no glue bottle and no hands — yet it builds a perfect sticky net overnight. How does it do it? In this lesson you will discover the spider's silk factory, watch a web get built step by step, and even test the sticky trap yourself. 🧪 Tip: tap, click and drag the pictures — this lesson likes to be poked!
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The silk factoryWhere does the silk come from? 🧵 Silk is made inside the spider's body, then squeezed out through tiny nozzles at the back called spinnerets. Tap the glowing spots to find out more. spinnerets silk glands 👆 Tap a glowing dot to learn its job. Spider silk starts as a liquid and turns solid the moment it is pulled into the air!
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Amazing silkSilk is stronger than it looks 💪 A single strand is thinner than your hair, yet for its weight spider silk is tougher than steel and can stretch like elastic without snapping. 🪶 Super light — a web weighs almost nothing. 🌀 Stretchy — it bends when a bug crashes in, so it doesn't break. 💧 Two kinds — some threads are dry (for walking) and some are sticky (for catching). You'll test this soon! The spider makes different silks for different jobs — like having a toolbox full of threads.
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Building the webWatch the web get built 🏗️ An orb web is built in a clever order. Press the button to spin the next thread and see each step appear. Step 0: An empty space between two branches. Ready to begin? 🕷️ Spin the first thread dry silk (frame & spokes) sticky silk (spiral)
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Spokes and spiralWhy build it in that order? 🤔 The spider is smart about it: 🌉 Bridge & frame first — like the edges of a trampoline, they hold everything up. ➖ Dry spokes next — these are the spider's walkways. It can run along them safely because they are not sticky. 🌀 Sticky spiral last — the spider lays this from the outside inwards to catch dinner. The spider even eats its old web to recycle the silk and make a fresh one — nothing is wasted! ♻️
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The sticky trapWhich thread traps the fly? 🪰 A fly lands on the web. Some threads are dry (safe to walk on) and one is the sticky spiral. Tap the thread you think will catch the fly. 🪰 Tap a thread to test it. Hint: sticky threads have tiny glue droplets like a string of beads. Dry threads are smooth and straight.
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Put it in orderBuild a web in the right order 🧩 Tap the four steps in the order a spider builds them, from first to last. 12 34 ?🌀 Lay the sticky spiral to catch bugs ?🌉 Float a bridge line across the gap ?➖ Add dry spokes from the middle ?🔲 Make the outside frame Pick the first step. ↺ Try again
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You're a web expert!🎉🕸️ You did it! Now you know how a spider spins its web: 🧵 Silk is made in silk glands and squeezed out of spinnerets. 🌉 The spider builds the bridge and frame first. ➖ Then the dry spokes — its safe walkways. 🌀 Finally the sticky spiral that traps flies. ♻️ Silk is stronger than steel for its weight — and can be recycled! Next time you spot a web sparkling with dew, you'll know the amazing engineering behind it. 🌟 Great work, little scientist! 🕷️
Frequently asked questions
- Where does spider silk come from?
- Silk is produced as a liquid in silk glands inside the spider's abdomen and is squeezed out through tiny spinnerets at the rear of its body. It hardens into a solid thread as soon as it touches the air.
- Why doesn't a spider get stuck in its own web?
- Only the spiral thread is coated with sticky glue; the frame and the straight spokes are dry. The spider walks along these dry threads and avoids the sticky spiral, so it does not get caught.
- How strong is spider silk?
- For its weight, spider silk is stronger than steel and can stretch like elastic before breaking. This mix of strength and stretchiness lets the web absorb the impact of a flying insect without tearing apart.
- In what order does a spider build an orb web?
- It starts with a bridge line across a gap, then adds the outer frame. Next it lays the dry spokes that radiate from the centre, and finally it spins the sticky spiral on top to catch prey.
- How does a spider start a web across a big gap?
- The spider releases a light strand of silk and lets the breeze carry it until the free end catches on a surface on the other side. This first 'bridge' line becomes the anchor for building the rest of the web.
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