Text written in Basque and translated automatically by Elia without any subsequent editing. SEE ORIGINAL

The Spider Network

Amarauna is one of the most spectacular structures that can be found in nature. The spider uses it to obtain food without having to hunt, and can be stronger than steel of the same thickness. It is composed of a silk that is very rich in proteins and is formed in the spinning organs of the spider in the back of the abdomen.

To construct the mesh, the spider forms an axis that can have more than one shape, then sutures the radii to it and finally draws a spiral that goes from the inside to the outside to join all the radii. In addition, like a climber, the spider always leaves a safety thread attached to the body so that it can escape immediately after perceiving the danger. This thread also serves to detect the movement of an insect that has fallen into the trap.

A spider spends about an hour building his network and uses a lot of energy in this work. For this reason, it is not uncommon to eat the net made by spiders every day to recover these proteins.

But not all spiders wait for their prey hidden in the web. Some make small nets for active hunting. Others wrap their enemy in silk so they don’t get attacked while clinging to their mouths.

There are many types of Amaraun: those made with adhesive threads and also similar to wool, designed to keep the prey chained when escaping. But they all share the same goal: capturing prey.