Biomaterials: silk-like secretion from tarantula feet.
An unsuspected attachment mechanism may help these huge spiders to avoid catastrophic falls. Spiders spin silk from specialized structures known as abdominal spinnerets--a defining feature of the creatures--and this is deployed to capture prey, protect themselves, reproduce and disperse. Here we show that zebra tarantulas (Aphonopelma seemanni) from Costa Rica also secrete silk from their feet to provide adhesion during locomotion, enabling these spiders to cling to smooth vertical surfaces. Our discovery that silk is produced by the feet provides a new perspective on the origin and diversification of spider silk.
Gorb
Stanislav N
SN
Evolutionary Biomaterials Group, Max Planck Institute for Metals Research, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany. s.gorb@mf.mpg.de
Niederegger
Senta
S
Hayashi
Cheryl Y
CY
Summers
Adam P
AP
Vötsch
Walter
W
Walther
Paul
P
D000268:Adhesiveness; D000818:Animals; D003364:Costa Rica; D005121:Extremities / Q000502:physiology*; D047011:Silk / Q000737:chemistry*; D013112:Spiders / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000502:physiology*
D047011:Silk