Spiders - and insects in general - aren’t usually thought of as long-lived creatures, but recently there is some more information from a study that shows that some eight-legged critters can live for over 40 years!
Here a spider spins its web in the early morning dew. Photo by Jack Ferguson
A female captive trapdoor spider from Australia lived until the ripe old age of 43, before dying a few weeks ago….presumably from old age. They can live this long due to their sedentary nature and low metabolisms.
Trapdoor spiders do not “hunt” in the popular sense of the word, but rather wait for prey to come to them. They make trapdoors that are hinged on one side with silk, and which are surrounded by silk "trip wires." When unsuspecting prey stumbles over these lines the spider is alerted, and pounces from its hiding place. The previous long life record for a spider was held by a 28-year-old tarantula found in Mexico.
Here a large huntsman spider shows its multiple eyes, that are placed around and on top of its head.
Below I present to you an array of some of the wonderful spiders that we have in Hong Kong. Here are at least two books on the spiders here, one of them dedicated only to the jumping spiders! I will cover quite a few of the different species over the year ahead, so stay tuned and keep reading! For a better view, please click the image.