Life in Newburgh on Ythan

By Talpa

By popular demand - more spiders.

Our car has been so little used in the last few months that it is being taken over by the local wild life.
Cross orb weaver spiders (Araneus diademnatus) lay their eggs in masses in the Autumn in crooks and crannies. As the temperatures rise in the spring the spiderlings, just 2-3 mm in size,  hatch out and huddle together.  In this case on the wing of our car!
Gradually the young orb weavers will disperse by  ‘ballooning'; they extrude thin strands of silk from their spinnerets to act as sails. These strands catch the breeze and lift the spiderlings into an arial journey that can range in distance from a few metres to several kilometres.
This is a welcome further addition to the ecosystem based on our car. Some time back I blipped the lichens colonising it.

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