Bingham Bulletin | 1945-05-18 | Page 9 | Why Spider doesn't Get Caught in its own Wed

Why Spider Doesn't Get Caught in Its Own Web Gently lay a straw across a spider's web, then very gently raise it, you will find that the outside out-side circles of the web stick to the straw. These outside circles are made, not of gossamer thread, but of gossamer tubing. They are hollow, hol-low, and are filled with a sticky stuff which exudes through the tube. When a fly gets caught in a web, it isn't because he gets entangled in the threads, but because be-cause he gets stuck in the glue! At the center of the web, where the spider sits, the threads are not hollow, but when he wants to move across the outer circles to capture his prey, he has the power of making his feet "sweat" an oily substance which counteracts counter-acts the gummy stuff. He slips over quite easily.