Spiders are more than the cartoon bug that scares Miss Muffet away. They lead varied and interesting lives on almost every continent (Antarctica excluded), and range in size from minute to over a foot in diameter. Each one plays its ecological role, and your Des Moines pest control specialists want you to realize how important spiders are.

Why Spiders Are Notorious

Most people do not like spiders. Why? They were taught not to like spiders. Much like snakes, spiders are not nearly as dangerous as society wants us to believe. Spiders are much more likely to retreat than attack, and are more scared of us than we are of them. 

Spiders in Nature

Eating insects is a spider’s renown. The methods they use are unique. Most of us know about spider webs and how insects are caught in the sticky cross fibers of the web. Not all spiders are orb weavers, though. Others live in the ground and snatch prey such as ants as they stroll by. Because spiders live both in the ground and in trees, they are easy prey for birds, who find them a delicacy. Removing spiders from an ecosystem would greatly reduce the bird population.

How They Help Farmers

For farmers and gardeners, spiders overwinter — they do not die like many insects during freezing temperatures — meaning they are ready to spring into action after the last frost, eating insect eggs, larva, and nymphs as they develop. This greatly reduces the insect population without us ever realizing it. With fewer insects eating crops, the crops are more likely to thrive.

Medical Advances

Scientists studying spider silk and determined its properties are aligned with human tissue regeneration and cellular repair. The ability to create a silk like material of the same property may greatly aid in tissue repair and regrowth.

The venom from biting spiders is used to help stroke victims, those with muscular dystrophy, as antivenin, and as a painkiller. The painkiller produced by spider venom is powerful enough to replace opiates, and trials are ongoing to determine the ultimate venom (likely tarantula) and how to best utilize it.

Spider Silk Benefits

Engineers studying silk have developed a material with the same structural properties of stiffness and durability. In fact, engineers are working on creating a lightweight, bulletproof fabric designed on the principles of spider silk. This fabric could be used in tactical vests as well as parachutes.

For your next barbecue, leave the spider webs in the corner where they will not be bothered. These natural mosquito repellants will keep your guests safer from predatory, disease-bearing insects. Give your Des Moines pest control team a call today at 515-279-7378 for a free consultation to see if you need more help than spiders can provide.