Further, the organic salt betaine is present in the viscous glue in high quantities. It might bind water and help in keeping the proteinaceous secretion soft and sticky.
Another glue dries quickly and contains a silk protein with a modified end, so it cannot form fibres. 4/4
Very excited to share my first paper is out! 🎉 We explore the evolution of the multiple eye pairs in spiders🕷️(cell.com/current-biology/ful…)
Couldn’t have done it without to the mentorship of the brilliant @Lauren_hSR!
It was a great pleasure to host @EvoBiomech David Labonte for a few days. We enjoyed inspiring discussions about arthropod biomechanics and generated new ideas.
Nature’s aquatic architects: Caddisfly larvae use specially adapted silk to construct portable cases and underwater shelters that provide protection and facilitate feeding. New #ProcB paper explores the evolutionary origins of this trait: ow.ly/srZE50SusUJ@paulbfrandsen
Spiders are masters in silk spinning and possess multiple different silk glands that produce fibres or glues with different properties.
Which gland is used for what - web, egg case, dispersal ...?
In a new preprint we give a summary on methods to find out:
doi.org/10.32942/X2CP7K
The threads spun by the Southern house spider (Kukulcania) to capture prey are the most extensible fibre material found in nature due to a special loops-on-loops structure with regularly coiled fibres held together by straight connecting fibres.
👉 doi.org/10.1098/rsfs.2023.00… 👈🔓
On our expedition to Borneo, we spotted an Amulius assassin bug that weaponises tree resin.
It coats its fore legs in it, and when a termite walks past, it gives it a sticky -- and deadly -- embrace and sucks out the prey's insides.
📷 Clister Pangantihon
Just returned from our #NoFly fieldtrip to Portugal and Catalonia.
We tested what is feasible: by opting to travel by #rail from Greifswald to Seville (~3,000km) we cut the CO2 foot print of our fielwork to ~0.3t vs over 2t by flying.
Great weekend at @CE3CResearch field station. A total of 15 arachnologists gathered to sample #spiders for different projects. Inventorying the local fauna kickstarting the #BASS project and looking for some species for studies on the evolution of #silk. Further plans ahead.
Had a nice day visit to the field station Herdade da Ribeira Abaixo (@CE3CResearch) where everything was in flowers 🌼. Thanks @cardosopmb for showing us around and pointing out the interesting spider habitats.
Ants! Robots! What more could you want?
There's still time to apply for this PhD opportunity (but be quick - applications close in April). Open to domestic AND international students, 4 years funding secured.
!!Funded PhD available (start 2024)!! Do you want to study #collectivebehaviour in weaver ants (in particular how they build their ultra-cool and totally unstudied silk nests), and develop #bioinspired#3Dprinting#swarmrobotics? Let me know! And please RT!