Spider webs may act as most sensitive ‘ears’ in known natural world

The bridge spider (Larinioides sclopetarius) uses its web to detect the sounds made by insects flying nearby and prepare itself for a potential meal

By Carissa Wong

Some spiders can pick up sounds in the air using their webs as acoustic antennae, and because the spider silk responds so precisely to vibrating air molecules, the webs may act as the most sensitive “eardrums” in the natural world.

We already know that spiders can detect prey tangled in their webs by sensing vibrations in the silk using touch organs around their leg joints.

Now, Jian Zhou at the Argonne National Laboratory in Illinois and his colleagues have found evidence that bridge spiders (Larinioides …