Arachnids
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Arachnids: Evolution, Diversity, Ecology, and Human Connections
Arachnids are an ancient and extraordinarily diverse group of arthropods that includes spiders, scorpions, ticks, mites, harvestmen, pseudoscorpions, camel spiders, whip spiders, and several lesser-known lineages. Research into living species and exceptionally preserved fossils is continually changing scientific understanding of where arachnids originated, how their distinctive bodies evolved, and how they diversified into predators, parasites, scavengers, herbivores, and ecological specialists.
The fossil record reaches hundreds of millions of years into the past. Cambrian fossils have provided evidence about the early evolution of chelicerates and structures that ultimately gave rise to characteristic arachnid anatomy. Studies of preserved nervous systems have even raised the possibility that important features of the arachnid lineage evolved in marine environments before arachnids became prominent inhabitants of terrestrial ecosystems.
Arachnid Evolution and Fossil History
Fossils provide some of the most important evidence for reconstructing arachnid origins. Cambrian arthropods preserve anatomical features that help scientists investigate the ancestry of spiders, scorpions, and their relatives. Fossilized nervous systems are particularly valuable because they allow researchers to compare ancient brain organization with that of modern arachnids.
Later fossils reveal that arachnids had already developed remarkable anatomical diversity hundreds of millions of years ago. Carboniferous specimens include heavily armored forms with unusual spiny legs, while ancient harvestmen provide evidence that their ancestors possessed additional eyes. Fossil spiders preserved in resin also demonstrate that sophisticated adaptations such as ant mimicry evolved millions of years ago.
Genetic and developmental studies complement this fossil evidence. Researchers are investigating how ancient developmental genes were reused or modified to produce characteristic arachnid structures, including specialized appendages, segmented scorpion tails, and the narrow waist separating major regions of a spider's body.
Spiders: Behavior, Hunting, and Social Life
Spider behavior encompasses far more than simply constructing a web and waiting for prey. Different species have evolved elaborate hunting strategies involving speed, camouflage, vibration, light, silk engineering, and deceptive structures.
Huntsman spiders rank among the fastest spiders measured, while some forest spiders can steer themselves through the air when falling. Semiaquatic species hunt around water, and the diving bell spider maintains an underwater silk chamber supplied with air.
Some spiders employ exceptionally elaborate traps. Research has documented spiders using silk mechanisms capable of catapulting ants into capture webs. Other species build spider-shaped decoys from silk, plant material, and prey remains. Studies have also found spiders exploiting captured fireflies and their bioluminescent signals in ways that can attract additional prey.
Spider webs themselves are dynamic sensory structures. Vibrations transmitted through silk provide information about prey, predators, mates, and environmental conditions. Research indicates that spiders can alter their webs when exposed to noise, demonstrating that web construction can respond to changing surroundings.
Social behavior is similarly diverse. Although most spiders are solitary, some species live in groups, while research on harvestmen and whip spiders reveals surprisingly complex parental and family behavior. Citizen-science observations have substantially expanded knowledge of egg guarding and the repeated evolution of paternal and maternal care among harvestmen.
Spider Silk, Webs, and Biomaterials
Spider silk combines strength, flexibility, toughness, and extremely low weight. Research into its molecular structure is revealing how interactions among silk proteins produce these unusual mechanical properties. Stretching silk can reorganize its microscopic structure and alter its performance.
Silk is also part of a spider's sensory apparatus. Because strands respond to tiny vibrations and movements of air, webs can function as extensions of the spider's sensory system. This has inspired research into highly sensitive microphones and other technologies.
Scientists are attempting to reproduce these properties artificially. Engineered spider silk is being investigated for wound healing, regenerative medicine, smart textiles, recyclable fibers, and other biomaterials. Researchers have genetically modified organisms such as silkworms to produce spider-silk proteins and have developed artificial fibers capable of solidifying in air and attaching to distant objects.
Spider webs may have another scientific application: environmental monitoring. DNA from animals moving through an ecosystem can become trapped on sticky webs, potentially allowing researchers to use spider silk as a passive collector of environmental DNA.
Scorpions and Other Arachnids
Scorpions represent another ancient and highly specialized arachnid lineage. Fossils show that enormous scorpions existed hundreds of millions of years ago, including forms exceeding a metre in length.
Modern scorpions possess sophisticated claws and stingers whose mechanical properties can be enhanced by metals such as zinc, iron, and manganese. Chemical imaging indicates that these elements strengthen heavily used parts of scorpion weaponry.
Genomic research is providing additional insight into scorpion evolution, while anatomical and developmental studies examine how their segmented tails and other characteristic structures arose. Researchers have also identified previously unknown species, including forms with reduced vision and species inhabiting highly specialized environments.
Other arachnid groups are equally unusual. Camel spiders possess enormous jaws and highly efficient respiratory systems associated with rapid predatory behavior. Pseudoscorpions are tiny predators equipped with pincers and sometimes travel by attaching themselves to larger animals. Whip spiders combine formidable-looking appendages with unexpectedly complex social and family behavior.
Ticks, Mites, Parasites, and Disease
Ticks and mites represent enormous components of arachnid diversity and have major ecological, agricultural, and medical importance.
Ticks transmit pathogens responsible for illnesses including Lyme disease, babesiosis, and several viral diseases. Research is examining tick immune systems, pathogen interactions, saliva, host detection, and methods of controlling tick populations. Static electricity may even help ticks bridge small air gaps between vegetation and potential hosts.
Scientists are also investigating vaccines, targeted antibiotics, biological control strategies, diagnostic tools, and molecular mechanisms that could reduce tick-borne disease.
Mites occupy an equally remarkable variety of ecological niches. Some feed on plants, others are predators or parasites, and certain lineages reproduce without sex over extremely long evolutionary periods. Studies of spider mites reveal diverse social systems and feeding strategies, while parasitic mites can live directly on other arachnids.
Arachnids themselves can also become hosts. Fungi, nematodes, mites, and other organisms parasitize spiders and related species. Some fungi manipulate spider behavior before producing spores, demonstrating the intricate ecological relationships connecting arachnids with parasites and microorganisms.
Venom, Medicine, and Biotechnology
Venom is one of the most important evolutionary innovations among spiders and scorpions. Its composition and potency vary substantially among species and reflect factors including prey, ecology, evolutionary history, and body size.
Researchers are increasingly investigating venom molecules as possible starting points for medicines. Spider-venom peptides have been studied as potential treatments for damage associated with heart attack and stroke, as well as neurological disorders such as epilepsy. Scorpion venom is also being examined for medically useful compounds and for its effects on blood clotting and other physiological processes.
These studies illustrate an important distinction between venomous animals and venom-derived compounds. A venom that evolved to immobilize prey may contain individual molecules whose highly specific biological activity can potentially be adapted for therapeutic purposes.
Arachnid Biodiversity and New Species
Arachnid diversity remains incompletely documented. New species continue to be discovered even in comparatively well-studied regions.
Taxonomic revisions can reveal that what scientists once considered a single widespread species actually consists of several distinct species. Research on Sydney funnel-web spiders, for example, divided the familiar group into multiple species. Surveys of Australian wishbone spiders identified dozens of previously undescribed species, while new trapdoor spiders continue to be documented from specialized habitats.
Lesser-known arachnid groups may contain similarly substantial hidden diversity. Genetic analysis, museum collections, field surveys, citizen science, and improved imaging technologies are increasingly being combined to identify species and reconstruct their evolutionary relationships.
Arachnids and Environmental Change
Arachnids respond to environmental changes ranging from urban noise to climate shifts and biological invasions. Some spiders modify their web construction when exposed to human-generated noise, while seasonal weather patterns can alter the length of periods during which spiders and scorpions remain active.
Global commerce creates additional ecological pressures. Ornamental plants and other traded materials can unintentionally transport small arachnids into regions far outside their native ranges. Citizen scientists are helping researchers monitor expanding populations of introduced species such as Joro spiders.
Climate change may be particularly threatening to arachnids with extremely restricted distributions. Species confined to small habitats can have little opportunity to move when temperature, precipitation, vegetation, or other environmental conditions change.
Conservation and the Arachnid Trade
Despite their ecological importance, many arachnids receive relatively little conservation attention. Large numbers of species have never received comprehensive conservation assessments, making it difficult to determine population trends or extinction risks.
The international exotic-pet trade creates additional challenges. Tarantulas, scorpions, and other visually striking arachnids can become highly desirable to collectors, sometimes shortly after being scientifically described. Research into online wildlife markets has documented both legal and illegal trade involving large numbers of arachnid species.
Habitat destruction, climate change, collection, venom harvesting, invasive species, and poorly monitored commerce may interact to threaten vulnerable populations. Improving taxonomy and population monitoring is therefore essential because species cannot be effectively protected when scientists do not yet know where they occur or how abundant they are.
Arachnids, Humans, and Scientific Research
Human attitudes toward arachnids are frequently dominated by fear, particularly toward spiders and scorpions. Yet the ecological importance of these animals extends far beyond the relatively small number of species capable of seriously harming people.
Predatory arachnids consume enormous quantities of insects and other small animals and occupy important positions within terrestrial food webs. Ticks and mites influence disease ecology, agriculture, and interactions among plants and animals. Arachnids also provide models for research into biomechanics, genetics, sensory biology, materials science, evolution, and medicine.
Museum collections play an especially important role. Collections containing hundreds of thousands or millions of specimens preserve records of biodiversity across geography and time. Historical specimens can be compared with modern populations, examined using technologies unavailable when they were collected, and used to resolve questions about taxonomy and evolutionary relationships.
Citizen science is expanding this research beyond traditional institutions. Photographs and observations submitted by members of the public have revealed previously undocumented behaviors, geographic distributions, invasive populations, and examples of parental care.
Conclusion
Arachnids are far more diverse than their familiar image as spiders and scorpions suggests. Their evolutionary history extends deep into the Paleozoic, while fossils and genetic research continue to reshape scientific ideas about their origins and relationships.
Modern arachnids demonstrate extraordinary evolutionary innovation. They build sophisticated sensory webs, manufacture remarkable biological materials, employ complex hunting strategies, produce chemically diverse venoms, transmit and resist pathogens, care for offspring, mimic other organisms, and occupy habitats ranging from deserts and rainforests to caves, freshwater environments, cities, and human homes.
At the same time, much of arachnid biodiversity remains poorly documented. New species are continually being discovered, known species are being divided into previously unrecognized lineages, and many populations have never been formally assessed for conservation risk. Understanding and conserving arachnids therefore requires continued integration of fossils, taxonomy, genetics, ecology, museum collections, field research, and citizen science.
Rather than being peripheral members of the animal world, arachnids are fundamental components of ecosystems and valuable subjects for understanding evolution, behavior, disease, biotechnology, and biodiversity itself.
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Arachnid Evolution and Fossils
518-Million-Year-Old Creature Reveals the Origins of Spider Fangs
| University research team | ScienceDaily | August 4, 2026
A 518-million-year-old fossil preserves pincer-like appendages that offer new evidence about the evolutionary origins of the structures that eventually became spider fangs.
This Tiny Claw in a 500-Million-Year-Old Fossil Just Rewrote the Origin of Spiders
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | April 3, 2026
A previously overlooked claw in a Cambrian fossil provides important evidence about the early evolution of chelicerates and the lineage leading toward arachnids.
This 500-Million-Year-Old Fossil of a Claw-Bearing Predator Uncovers the Origins of Spiders, Scorpions and Other Arthropods
| Margherita Bassi | Smithsonian Magazine | April 2, 2026
A reanalysis of an extraordinary Cambrian fossil identifies one of the earliest known chelicerates and sheds light on the ancestry of spiders, scorpions and related animals.
A 500-Million-Year-Old Fossil Just Rewrote the Spider Origin Story
| University of Arizona | ScienceDaily | July 24, 2025
Analysis of the fossilized brain of Mollisonia suggests that the ancestors of modern arachnids may have evolved in marine environments.
500-Million-Year-Old Fossil Suggests Ocean Origin for Spiders
| Carly Cassella | ScienceAlert | July 23, 2025
Fossil evidence from Mollisonia provides another line of support for a marine origin of spiders and their close relatives.
Half-a-Billion-Year-Old Fossil Could Be Earliest Known Arachnid
| James Ashworth | Natural History Museum | July 22, 2025
Fossilized nervous-system structures in Mollisonia suggest that characteristic features of arachnid brains may have evolved more than 500 million years ago.
Fossilized Nervous System Points to Ocean Origins for Spiders and Relatives
| University of Arizona | Phys.org | July 22, 2025
Researchers studying an exceptionally preserved Cambrian nervous system argue that the arachnid lineage may have originated in the sea.
Tiny Fossil Suggests Spiders and Their Relatives Originated in the Sea
| University of Arizona | EurekAlert! | July 22, 2025
Preserved brain anatomy in an ancient marine arthropod challenges the traditional assumption that arachnids diversified only after colonizing land.
'Backward' Brain of Ancient Sea Creature Hints Spider Ancestors Evolved in the Ocean
| Skyler Ware | Live Science | July 22, 2025
The unusual organization of a Cambrian animal's nervous system resembles that of living spiders and points toward an ancient marine arachnid ancestor.
Ancient Arachnid From Coal Forests of America Stands Out for Its Spiny Legs
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | May 17, 2024
A strange fossil arachnid from Carboniferous coal forests expands scientists' understanding of the remarkable body forms found among early arachnids.
Research Uncovers a Rare Resin Fossil Find: A Spider That Aspires to Be an Ant
| Steve Lundeberg | Oregon State University | March 25, 2024
A fossil spider preserved in resin provides rare evidence that ant mimicry evolved in spiders millions of years ago.
Daddy Longlegs Have Four Extra, Hidden Eyes, Researchers Say
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | March 19, 2024
Developmental research indicates that harvestmen retain traces of additional eyes, helping reconstruct the ancient visual systems of arachnids.
Spiders and Scorpions Have Co-Opted Leg Genes to Build Their Heads
| University of Wisconsin–Madison | UW–Madison News | 2018
Evolutionary-developmental research shows how ancient genetic pathways controlling appendages have been repurposed to construct specialized arachnid head structures.
Venom Shape Untangles Scorpion Family Tree
| University of Wisconsin–Madison | UW–Madison News | 2018
Researchers used the three-dimensional structures of venom proteins to help reconstruct evolutionary relationships among scorpion lineages.
New Professor Turns to Arachnids to Solve Evolutionary Puzzles
| University of Wisconsin–Madison | College of Letters & Science | 2015
Evolutionary biologist Prashant Sharma uses scorpions, harvestmen and other ancient arachnid groups to investigate how biological diversity evolves.
Fossil Daddy Longlegs Once Had Extra Eyes
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | April 10, 2014
X-ray analysis of a 305-million-year-old harvestman revealed lateral eyes absent in living harvestmen, providing clues to the evolution of arachnid vision.
Spider Behavior and Ecology
Scientists Ranked Hundreds of Spider Species by Running Speed. Australia's Huge, Hairy Brown Huntsman Came Out on Top
| Sara Hashemi | Smithsonian Magazine | July 15, 2026
Researchers compared the running performance of hundreds of spiders and found Australia's brown huntsman among the fastest species measured.
Australia's Huntsman Fastest Spider Recorded in New Study
| Jacinta Bowler | ABC Science | July 10, 2026
An analysis of 258 spider species found that huntsman spiders can reach extraordinary short-distance speeds.
This Newly Discovered Ballista Spider Catapults Ants Into a Deadly Trap
| Macquarie University | ScienceDaily | June 26, 2026
Researchers describe the remarkable hunting mechanics of a spider whose prey triggers a silk catapult.
This Newly Discovered Spider Builds a Unique Web That Catapults Ants Through the Air
| Sarah Kuta | Smithsonian Magazine | June 24, 2026
A newly studied Australian spider constructs a spring-loaded silk mechanism that launches green tree ants into its capture web.
Scientists Discover Spider That Disguises Itself as a Parasitic Fungus
| Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change | ScienceDaily | June 17, 2026
A newly described Ecuadorian Amazon spider resembles a fungus that attacks spiders, potentially giving it camouflage from predators or prey.
Context-Dependent Abdomen Bobbing in a Jumping Spider: A Dynamic Visual Signal
| Nadja Geiger et al. | Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology | May 13, 2026
Researchers investigate how jumping spiders vary rhythmic abdomen movements depending on social and environmental circumstances.
This “Pink Floyd” Spider Hunts Prey 6x Its Size and Lives in Walls
| Pensoft Publishers | ScienceDaily | May 1, 2026
The newly described Pikelinia floydmuraria lives around buildings and captures ants and other insects many times its own size.
Tiny Spiders That Build Giant 'Puppet' Decoys From Disembodied Prey Discovered in Peru and Philippines
| Sascha Pare | Live Science | November 12, 2025
Cyclosa spiders construct oversized spider-shaped decoys from silk, plant material and prey remains, apparently helping deter predators.
World's Biggest Spiderweb Discovered Inside 'Sulfur Cave' With 111,000 Arachnids Living in Pitch Black
| Sascha Pare | Live Science | November 4, 2025
Researchers found an enormous cave web inhabited by more than 100,000 spiders from species not normally considered colonial.
These Mysterious 'Decorations' in Spiderwebs Might Help Spiders Better Locate Their Prey
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | October 31, 2025
Modeling suggests web decorations may influence how prey-generated vibrations travel through orb webs and reach waiting spiders.
Check This Out: Spidey Super Powers
| Duke University | Duke Research & Innovation | October 30, 2025
Research on harvestman and spider vision explores how the miniature optical systems of arachnids could inspire new camera technologies.
Spiders Turn Fireflies Into Glowing Traps
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | August 28, 2025
Sheet-web spiders appear to retain glowing fireflies in their webs, using the insects' light to attract additional prey.
Spiders Seen Keeping Fireflies as Glowing Prisoners That Draw More Prey to Their Webs
| Hannah Osborne | Live Science | August 28, 2025
Observations suggest spiders can exploit the bioluminescence of captured fireflies to increase their hunting success.
Social 'Hippie' Spiders Don't Believe in Labels
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | April 28, 2025
Research on social spiders challenges the idea that individual animals can always be assigned stable personality categories.
Getting Annoyed at Your Noisy Neighbor? Spiders Are, Too
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | March 25, 2025
Experiments found that spiders alter web construction when exposed to environmental noise and that urban and rural populations may react differently.
These Spiders Use Captured Fireflies as Flashing Lures to Snare More Prey
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | August 21, 2024
Orb-weavers appear capable of manipulating firefly signals so other fireflies are attracted to their webs.
Spider Exploits Firefly's Flashing Signals to Lure More Prey
| Cell Press | ScienceDaily | August 19, 2024
Experiments show how spiders exploit bioluminescent communication between fireflies as part of their own predatory strategy.
These Funky Spiders Are Lurking by the Water
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | May 17, 2024
Aquatic and semiaquatic spiders display unusual adaptations ranging from carrying air bubbles to building shelters near or beneath water.
Diving Bell Spider: The Only Aquatic Arachnid That Creates a Web Underwater to Live In
| Megan Shersby | Live Science | February 10, 2024
Diving bell spiders carry air underwater and maintain submerged silk chambers where they feed, rest and reproduce.
Noble False Widow Spider Found Preying on Pygmy Shrew
| University of Galway | ScienceDaily | February 21, 2023
A noble false widow spider captured, immobilized and consumed a pygmy shrew, adding evidence that some spiders regularly prey on vertebrates.
What Is the Largest Arachnid to Ever Live?
| Cameron Duke | Live Science | April 5, 2022
Paleontologists examine which living and extinct chelicerates qualify as the largest arachnids and explain ongoing debates about arachnid evolutionary relationships.
Biologists Discover Skydiving Spiders in South American Forests
| Robert Sanders | Berkeley News | August 18, 2015
Flat-bodied Selenops spiders can steer their falls toward tree trunks, revealing unexpected aerial control in an animal without wings.
Spider Reproduction and Social Life
Male Redback Spider's Dramatic Death Somersault During Sex Coded in Its DNA
| Ellen Phiddian | ABC Science | August 12, 2026
Genetic research suggests the extraordinary self-sacrificial mating behavior of male redbacks has a relatively simple inherited basis.
Male Redback Spiders Invite Cannibalism Through a 'Self-Sacrificial Somersault' During Sex – But Why?
| Donna Lu | The Guardian | August 12, 2026
Researchers investigate the evolutionary and genetic basis for male redback spiders deliberately positioning themselves to be eaten during mating.
These Bizarre New Tarantulas Turn Mating Into a Fight for Survival
| Pensoft Publishers | ScienceDaily | April 6, 2026
Newly described Satyrex tarantulas possess unusually long reproductive structures that may allow males to keep dangerous females at a safer distance.
Sparklemuffin Peacock Spider: The Spider With Secret Iridescent Scales That Busts a Move to Win a Mate
| Melissa Hobson | Live Science | March 15, 2025
Male sparklemuffin peacock spiders combine brilliant coloration with complex courtship dances to attract females.
Tarantulas Have Surprising Partnerships With Other Species and Their Hairiness May Be a Defense Mechanism
| University research team | ScienceDaily | August 22, 2024
A broad review reveals unexpected ecological relationships involving tarantulas and proposes defensive explanations for their characteristic hairiness.
Harvestmen and Lesser-Known Arachnids
Your Photos Can Help Make Scientific Discoveries
| Rosannette Quesada Hidalgo | Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute | August 13, 2026
Citizen-science photographs dramatically expanded researchers' knowledge of egg guarding and parental care among harvestmen.
Spider-Like Creatures Help Uncover the Surprising Origins of Fatherhood
| Linnean Society of London | ScienceDaily | July 12, 2026
Observations collected through iNaturalist reveal that paternal and maternal care evolved repeatedly in harvestmen.
Daddy Longlegs Seem to Hunt Frogs in South America
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | May 27, 2026
Evidence of harvestmen attacking frogs challenges the traditional view that these arachnids mostly scavenge small or dead prey.
Camel Spiders: Arachnids Built Around Extraordinary Jaws
| American Museum of Natural History | AMNH | 2025
Museum research highlights the enormous jaws, specialized sensory organs and remarkable adaptations that distinguish solifuges from spiders and scorpions.
New Record of Camel Spider Galeodes indicus From Central India
| Researchers | International Journal of Global Science Research | October 2024
Field observations expanded the known Indian distribution of the camel spider Galeodes indicus and summarized its taxonomy and regional records.
Tiny Roundworms Carve Out Unique Parasitic Niche Inside Pseudoscorpion's Protective Covering
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | June 6, 2024
Researchers discovered nematodes exploiting the protected space beneath a pseudoscorpion's body covering.
Researchers Identify Two New Arachnid Species
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | December 12, 2023
Scientists described an unusual cave-dwelling whip spider from Colombia and a previously unknown scorpion from Mount Olympus.
Giant North American Vinegaroon: Actually 7 Different Species
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | 2018
Research revealed that the supposedly widespread giant North American vinegaroon actually represents multiple distinct species.
Cuticular Fluorescence in Chelicerates
| M. Rubin et al. | Journal of Zoology | 2017
Comparisons across scorpions, harvestmen, camel spiders and other chelicerates investigated which groups possess strongly ultraviolet-fluorescent cuticles.
Respiration Makes Camel Spiders Potent Predators
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | September 15, 2016
CT scans reveal the highly efficient respiratory system that may help camel spiders sustain rapid pursuit of prey.
Close Up on the Fearsome Jaws of Camel Spiders
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | June 22, 2015
Scientists produced a detailed anatomical atlas of solifuge jaws, one of the most distinctive and poorly understood structures among arachnids.
A Rarity Among Arachnids, Predatory Whip Spiders Have a Sociable Family Life
| Krishna Ramanujan | Cornell Chronicle | March 12, 2007
Whip spiders exhibit surprisingly gentle family behavior, including maternal contact and persistent sibling associations.
Systematics of the Damon variegatus Group of African Whip Spiders
| Lorenzo Prendini et al. | Organisms, Diversity & Evolution | 2005
Behavioral observations, morphology and DNA evidence were combined to reconstruct relationships among African Damon whip spiders.
Pseudoscorpions
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | Undated
An introduction to tiny predatory pseudoscorpions, including their venomous pincers, unusual hitchhiking behavior and role in controlling small pests.
Scorpions
World's Largest Scorpion Revealed by 415-Million-Year-Old Fossils
| James Ashworth | Natural History Museum | June 3, 2026
Fossils confirm Praearcturus gigas as a gigantic prehistoric scorpion more than a metre long and one of the earliest large terrestrial predators.
South African Authorities Thwart Smuggling of 150 Venomous Scorpions
| Spoorthy Raman | Mongabay | June 2026
A wildlife trafficking seizure highlights the growing conservation threat posed by international demand for scorpions and their venom.
Scorpions Are So Metal—Literally
| Carlyn Kranking | Smithsonian Magazine | April 28, 2026
Researchers mapped iron, zinc and manganese in scorpion claws and stingers, showing how metals reinforce structures used for capturing prey and defense.
New Map Reveals Where Lethal Scorpions Are Most Likely to Strike
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | February 18, 2026
Researchers combine field observations and environmental modeling to predict habitats suitable for medically important scorpion species.
Amazon Scorpion Venom Shows Stunning Power Against Breast Cancer
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | November 18, 2025
Experimental research is investigating molecules derived from Amazonian scorpion venom for potential anticancer applications.
Consider the Scorpions
| Mongabay staff | Mongabay | September 2025
Conservationists warn that habitat loss, climate change, venom harvesting and the exotic pet trade are placing poorly monitored scorpion species at risk.
Researchers Publish First-of-Its-Kind Scorpion Genome
| Jaclyn Severance | University of Connecticut / Phys.org | June 12, 2024
Scientists produced the first chromosome-level genome for the desert hairy scorpion, improving comparative research across the arachnid tree.
Researchers Discover Partially Blind Scorpion in Amazon Rainforest Leaflitter
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | April 12, 2024
A newly identified Amazonian scorpion has greatly reduced eyes despite living in forest leaf litter rather than a permanently dark cave.
Scorpions Outdo Spiders as Scary Creatures
| Sarah Nightingale | UC Riverside | June 13, 2018
A survey comparing arachnid fears found participants reported even stronger reactions to scorpions than to spiders.
How Scorpion Tails Are Patterned: New Findings
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | 2014
Developmental studies reveal extensive duplication of Hox genes that may help explain how scorpions evolved their highly segmented tails.
Spider Silk, Web Mechanics and Biomaterials
Spiders' Gyroscopic Motion via Web Mechanical Intelligence Facilitates Prey Sensing
| T. C. P. Masmeijer et al. | Scientific Reports | August 19, 2026
Experiments show how spider movement and web mechanics interact as an extended sensory system for locating prey.
This Tiny Molecular Trick Makes Spider Silk Almost Unbreakable
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | February 6, 2026
Molecular interactions between silk proteins help explain how spider silk combines exceptional strength, toughness and flexibility.
From Webs to Wound Healing: ASU Scientists Harness Silk for Medical Innovation
| Jenny Green | Arizona State University | October 28, 2025
Scientists are studying spider silk's remarkable molecular properties to develop regenerative materials and new approaches to wound healing.
Stretching Spider Silk Makes It Stronger
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | March 7, 2025
Researchers show that mechanical stretching can rearrange spider-silk structures in ways that enhance their performance.
Inspired by Spider-Man, a Lab Recreates Web-Slinging Technology
| Tufts University | ScienceDaily | October 10, 2024
Researchers created artificial silk fibers that solidify in mid-air, attach to distant objects and can lift items many times their own weight.
Spinning Artificial Spider Silk Into Next-Generation Medical Materials
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | September 24, 2024
Scientists are developing artificial spider silk as a strong and biocompatible material for advanced medical applications.
Spider Silk Sound System
| Binghamton University | ScienceDaily | May 16, 2024
Researchers explore the acoustical properties of spider silk and how its extreme sensitivity to moving air could inspire microphones and sensors.
Spider Silk Is Spun by Silkworms for the First Time, Offering a Green Alternative to Synthetic Fibers
| Cell Press | ScienceDaily | September 20, 2023
Genetically modified silkworms produced complete spider-silk proteins and spun fibers reported to be much tougher than Kevlar.
Taking a Lesson From Spiders: Researchers Create an Innovative Method to Produce Soft, Recyclable Fibers for Smart Textiles
| National University of Singapore | ScienceDaily | July 10, 2023
Researchers mimicked spider silk production to manufacture stretchable, conductive and recyclable fibers for wearable electronics.
Synthetic Biology Meets Fashion in Engineered Silk
| Washington University in St. Louis | ScienceDaily | April 21, 2023
Bioengineers increased microbial production of synthetic spider silk while retaining the material's unusual combination of strength and toughness.
Spider Venom, Anatomy and Medicine
Why Some Spiders Are More Venomous Than Others
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | May 21, 2025
A comparison of venom from dozens of spider species explores how ecology, body size and evolutionary history influence venom potency.
University of Galway Researchers Uncover Why Some Spiders Are More Venomous Than Others
| University of Galway | EurekAlert! | May 21, 2025
Analysis of venom from more than 70 spider species found that prey type and diet are important predictors of venom potency.
'Big Boy' Spider Becomes Australia's Largest Deadly Funnel-Web After Surprise Discovery
| Olivia Ferrari | Live Science | January 20, 2025
Taxonomic work split the famous Sydney funnel-web into three species, including a newly recognized exceptionally large form.
Australian Zoo Asks Residents to Capture the World's Most Venomous Spider
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | November 18, 2024
Australia's funnel-web antivenom program depends on members of the public safely turning captured spiders over to specialists.
Spider Venom Heart Drug Moves to Clinical Trials
| University of Queensland | UQ News | October 7, 2024
A peptide derived from K'gari funnel-web spider venom is advancing toward human trials as a possible treatment to reduce damage caused by heart attacks.
MRFF Backs UQ Epilepsy Research
| University of Queensland | UQ News | September 17, 2024
Australian researchers are testing spider-venom proteins as potential epilepsy treatments using brain and heart organoids grown from patient cells.
Ancient Gene Gives Spiders Their Narrow Waist
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | August 29, 2024
Developmental genetics research identifies ancient genes involved in producing the characteristic narrow connection between spider body regions.
Spider Venom Heart Drug a Step Closer
| University of Queensland | UQ News | January 17, 2024
The funnel-web venom molecule Hi1a successfully passed important preclinical tests as a potential treatment for heart attack and stroke damage.
Meet 'Hercules,' the Largest Male Funnel-Web Spider Ever Found
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | January 5, 2024
An unusually large male funnel-web spider nicknamed Hercules was donated to an Australian antivenom-production program.
Ticks and Tick-Borne Disease
The First At-Home Test for Infected Ticks Could Improve Lyme Disease Diagnosis
| Kristen A. Schmitt | Smithsonian Magazine | July 31, 2026
A new home test is designed to screen removed ticks for Lyme disease bacteria while researchers and clinicians discuss its potential benefits and limitations.
Emerging Tick-Borne Virus Raises Concern
| Iqbal Pittalwala | UC Riverside | July 14, 2026
Scientists investigate how dangerous orthonairoviruses transmitted by ticks evade human immune responses.
'Every Year Is a Bad Tick Year': Expert Tips to Reduce Your Risk
| Cornell Chronicle | Cornell University | March 27, 2026
Cornell specialists explain tick activity, seasonal risk and practical measures people can take to reduce encounters with ticks.
A Cholesterol Secret Inside Ticks May Halt Lyme Disease Spread
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | July 4, 2025
Researchers found that tick-borne pathogens manipulate cellular cholesterol pathways, potentially revealing new targets for blocking infections.
Q&A: With a Rare Tick-Borne Disease Now in Virginia, What Do You Need to Know?
| Jane Kelly | UVA Today | July 1, 2025
University specialists discuss the spread of babesiosis and the role blacklegged ticks play in transmitting the parasitic disease.
Once Bitten, Animals Develop Resistance That Shrinks Tick Population
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | April 30, 2025
Immune responses triggered by previous tick bites may reduce future tick survival and could inform development of anti-tick vaccines.
The Antibiotic That Takes the Bite Out of Lyme
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | April 23, 2025
Scientists examine a targeted antibiotic strategy aimed at killing Lyme disease bacteria while minimizing damage to beneficial microbes.
More Ticks Carry Lyme Disease Bacteria in Pheasant-Release Areas
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | April 21, 2025
Researchers found elevated prevalence of Lyme-associated bacteria among ticks in landscapes where pheasants are released.
Breakthrough Could Revolutionize Future of Tick Control
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | November 27, 2024
New biological discoveries could lead to more precise approaches for controlling ticks and reducing transmission of tick-borne diseases.
Lyme Borreliosis: New Approach for Developing Targeted Therapy
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | October 23, 2024
Scientists identify molecular features of Borrelia bacteria that could support more targeted treatments for Lyme borreliosis.
Rates of a Tick-Borne Parasitic Disease Are on the Rise
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | October 8, 2024
Surveillance data show increasing rates of babesiosis, a disease caused by parasites transmitted primarily through tick bites.
Scientists Map DNA of Lyme Disease Bacteria
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | August 15, 2024
Extensive genomic research on Lyme disease bacteria helps scientists understand their diversity, evolution and mechanisms of infection.
Static Electricity Attracts Ticks to Hosts
| University of Bristol | ScienceDaily | July 1, 2023
Experiments showed that static electrical charges generated by mammals can pull ticks across air gaps toward potential hosts.
Ticks Prove Resilient to Extreme Temperatures
| Washington State University | ScienceDaily | June 4, 2023
Field research found that blacklegged ticks survive hot and cold weather better than laboratory experiments had suggested.
Discovery of Cross-Species Signaling Pathway Unlocks Mysteries Around Parasite Immunity and Development
| University of Maryland | ScienceDaily | January 13, 2023
Researchers discovered that ticks detect immune molecules in infected mammalian blood and use the signal to activate their own defenses.
Ticked Off: New Device May Offer a Better Way to Prevent Tick Bites
| University of Massachusetts Amherst | ScienceDaily | November 9, 2022
Scientists tested spatial repellents designed specifically for the slow host-seeking behavior of ticks rather than flying insects.
Study Demonstrates That Ticks Weaken Skin's Immune Response
| Medical University of Vienna | ScienceDaily | September 28, 2022
Tick saliva suppresses important immune responses in human skin, making it easier for pathogens introduced during feeding to establish infections.
Why Don't Ticks Die of Lyme Disease?
| Laura Geggel | Live Science | February 14, 2017
Comparative genomic research revealed unusual aspects of arachnid immune systems that help ticks tolerate the bacteria responsible for Lyme disease.
Ticks, Tick Bites and Lyme Disease: How to Protect Yourself
| James Ashworth, Nicola Pearson and Anne Baker | Natural History Museum | Undated
An overview of tick biology, life cycles, Lyme disease transmission, tick-bite symptoms and methods of reducing exposure.
Mites and Acarology
This Spider's 'Pearl Necklace' Was Living Parasites
| Pensoft Publishers | ScienceDaily | January 28, 2026
What initially resembled decorative beads on a spider proved to be larvae of a previously unknown parasitic mite.
A Mite-Y Use of Electricity
| University research team | ScienceDaily | January 28, 2025
Researchers demonstrate how mites exploit electrostatic forces in ways that assist movement or interactions with larger animals.
Evolution Without Sex: How Mites Have Survived for Millions of Years
| University research team | ScienceDaily | January 24, 2025
Genetic research investigates how asexual mite lineages have persisted over extremely long evolutionary timescales.
Diversity in Life Types of Spider Mites
| Yutaka Saito and Yukie Sato | Frontiers in Arachnid Science | August 9, 2024
A review examines the striking diversity of social systems, feeding strategies and ecological lifestyles found among spider mites.
Agricultural Acarology Workshop Explores Mite Biology
| University of Florida Entomology and Nematology Department | University of Florida | June 2024
Researchers and students received hands-on training in mite morphology, taxonomy, behavior and biological control.
Plants Utilize Drought Stress Hormone to Block Snacking Spider Mites
| University research team | ScienceDaily | May 3, 2024
Plants use hormonal defenses associated with drought stress to make themselves less suitable for herbivorous spider mites.
Arachnid Conservation, Trade and Environmental Change
Scared of Spiders? Scientists Say the Real Nightmare Is Losing Them
| University of Massachusetts Amherst | ScienceDaily | March 14, 2026
Researchers found enormous gaps in conservation assessments for North American insects and arachnids, with most arachnid species lacking formal status.
Scientists Want Your Help to Track the Spread of Invasive Joro Spiders at Great Smoky Mountains National Park
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | September 11, 2025
Researchers are using citizen observations to map the expansion of nonnative Joro spiders.
Study Reveals Surge in Illegal Arachnid Trade via Facebook in Philippines
| Keith Anthony Fabro | Mongabay | June 30, 2025
Researchers documented thousands of tarantulas and scorpions being offered through social media, including threatened and regulated species.
Scorpion Season Is Here!
| Dawn H. Gouge et al. | University of Arizona | May 15, 2025
University specialists explain scorpion biology, identification, activity patterns and practical methods for reducing encounters around homes.
Spider Sense: Study Tracks How Web-Building Arachnids Adapt to Noise
| Tiffany Lee | Nebraska Today | March 17, 2025
Orb-weaving spiders exposed to human-generated noise altered their web-building behavior, demonstrating how arachnids can modify sensory structures in changing environments.
Both Legal and Illegal Wildlife Trade Need Better Monitoring
| Mongabay | Mongabay | March 2025
Research into the international wildlife trade shows arachnids are traded in enormous numbers yet remain poorly represented in conservation monitoring systems.
Arachnid in Your Orchid? Ornamental Plant Trade Risks Spreading Invasive Species
| Kristine Sabillo | Mongabay | March 2025
International trade in ornamental plants can transport spiders and other small arachnids far beyond their natural ranges.
A Venomous Australian Spider Turns Out to Be 3 Species, Not 1
| Shreya Dasgupta | Mongabay | January 17, 2025
Genetic and morphological research divided the Sydney funnel-web complex into three distinct species, demonstrating how much arachnid diversity remains undocumented.
Will Climate Change Lead to the Extinction of a Newly Discovered Tarantula Species?
| Pensoft Publishers | ScienceDaily | August 21, 2024
The restricted geographic range of a newly described tarantula makes it particularly vulnerable to habitat and climatic changes.
US Museum Curator Held in Turkey Over Spider and Scorpion Samples Is Freed
| Associated Press | The Guardian | May 16, 2024
An arachnid researcher detained while transporting spider and scorpion specimens from Turkey was released after authorities dropped potential charges.
US Museum Curator Accused of Trying to Smuggle Spider and Scorpion Samples Out of Turkey
| Associated Press | The Guardian | May 13, 2024
The detention of an American arachnologist carrying roughly 1,500 specimens highlighted legal and ethical issues surrounding international biological collecting.
Joro Spiders, Spreading in the Southeast, Can Survive Surprisingly Well in Cities
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | February 26, 2024
Experiments suggest invasive Joro spiders tolerate urban disturbances better than many native spider species.
Study: Online Trade in Arachnids Threatens Some Species With Extinction
| Ryan Truscott | Mongabay | March 1, 2023
Analysis of online markets identified more than a thousand arachnid species in trade and raised concerns about unsustainable wild collection.
Arachnid Collections, Education and Research
It's Alive: Students Snare Spiders for Museum Exhibit
| Blaine Friedlander | Cornell Chronicle | February 19, 2018
Cornell students collected and prepared hundreds of spiders for a museum exhibition designed to teach visitors about arachnid biology.
Behind Spiders Alive: The Arachnid Collection
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | July 30, 2012
The museum's enormous arachnid collection preserves more than a million spider specimens along with important scorpion and lesser-known arachnid collections.
Exhibits Alive! Live Animals at the Museum
| AMNH | American Museum of Natural History | July 11, 2012
Museum specialists describe the challenges of maintaining tarantulas, scorpions, orb-weavers and other live arachnids for public exhibitions.
Cornell's 'Spider Woman' Spins Web of Science Outreach That Stretches Far Beyond the Classroom
| Susan S. Lang | Cornell Chronicle | February 2, 2006
Arachnologist Linda Rayor used live spiders and student outreach programs to teach thousands of people about spiders and biological science.
Sea Spiders and Chelicerate Relatives
These 'Weird' Sea Spiders Don't Have Abdomens—and Instead Store Organs in Their Legs
| Smithsonian staff | Smithsonian Magazine | July 11, 2025
Genome sequencing provides clues to why sea spiders have extraordinarily reduced bodies and internal organs extending into their legs.
How a Lost Gene Gave the Sea Spider Its Bizarre, Leggy Body
| University of Wisconsin–Madison | ScienceDaily | July 7, 2025
Scientists link the unusual sea-spider body plan to the evolutionary loss of an important developmental gene.
Meet the 'Weird' Sea Spider That's Mapping the Evolution of Eight-Legged Creatures
| Chris Barncard | Phys.org | July 3, 2025
Researchers use sea-spider genetics to investigate the ancestral body plan of chelicerates and the evolutionary history of arachnid relatives.
Meet the 'Weird' Sea Spider That's Mapping the Evolution of Eight-Legged Creatures
| Chris Barncard | UW–Madison News | July 2, 2025
Sequencing the genome of a sea spider gives scientists an important comparison for reconstructing the early evolution of spiders, scorpions and other chelicerates.
Watch Enormous Deep-Sea Spiders Crawl Around Sub-Antarctic Seafloor
| Pandora Dewan | Live Science | March 19, 2025
Deep-sea observations show giant sea spiders moving across the remote seafloor near the South Sandwich Islands.
Arachnids, Parasites and Disease
New Fungal Species Named in Honor of Sir David Attenborough Making Zombies of Cave Spiders
| CAB International | ScienceDaily | January 29, 2025
Researchers described a fungus that infects cave spiders and manipulates their behavior before producing spores from their bodies.
How the Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus Enters Our Cells
| Research institutions | ScienceDaily | March 28, 2024
Molecular research examines how a medically important tick-borne virus gains access to human cells.
UCR Scientists Discover Tarantula-Killing Worm
| Jules Bernstein | UC Riverside | January 18, 2022
Scientists described a nematode parasite that infects tarantulas, damages their mouthparts and can ultimately kill the spiders.
Arachnid Diversity and New Species
Rare Animals, Photography and Instagram Could Help an Ivorian Rainforest
| Ryan Truscott | Mongabay | June 2026
Ecotourism in Côte d'Ivoire highlights spectacular arachnids including tailless whipscorpions and emperor scorpions as potential ambassadors for rainforest conservation.
Scorpions Have Been Forging Metal Weapons for 400 Million Years
| University of Queensland | UQ Science | April 29, 2026
Scientists found that scorpions selectively incorporate zinc, iron and manganese into their claws and stingers, making these structures harder and more resistant to wear.
Blood Clot Sting in the Tail of Scorpion Venom
| University of Queensland | UQ News | March 4, 2026
Research on fat-tailed scorpions found that their venom can rapidly promote blood clotting as well as attack the nervous system, revealing another medically important effect of scorpion envenomation.
University of Dubuque Professor Leads Bioinformatics Analysis in Discovery of Bacterial Communities Living in Scorpion Venom
| Stacey Ortman | University of Dubuque | February 9, 2026
Researchers discovered diverse bacterial communities living directly within the venom of two scorpion species, challenging the assumption that animal venom is sterile.
Researchers Discover a 'Scary' New Spider Species Beneath California's Beaches
| University of California, Davis | ScienceDaily | November 2, 2025
Genetic work identified a previously unknown trapdoor spider living in California's coastal dune ecosystems.
And Along Came a Spider
| Kathy Keatley Garvey | UC Davis | October 30, 2025
UC Davis researchers described a new trapdoor spider from coastal dune habitats extending from central California toward Baja California.
Why Scorpions and Spiders May Linger Longer
| University of Arizona College of Medicine–Phoenix | University of Arizona | October 27, 2025
A mild Arizona winter can extend the seasonal activity of spiders and scorpions, increasing the period during which people may encounter these arachnids.
Spider Woman: Untangling the Evolution and Biodiversity of Web Spinners
| Cal State Fullerton | CSUF News | October 21, 2025
Arachnologist Anna Holmquist studies spider biodiversity, web-building behavior and the responses of social cobweb spiders to urban environments.
Sticky Science: LMU Researchers Explore What Spider Silk Reveals About Ecosystems
| Loyola Marymount University | LMU Newsroom | October 17, 2025
Researchers are collecting environmental DNA trapped on sticky spider webs to survey birds, mammals, amphibians and other animals living nearby.
Lone Star and Gulf Coast Ticks Discovered by Student at the University of Dubuque's Wolter Woods and Prairies
| Stacey Ortman | University of Dubuque | September 19, 2025
Student researchers recorded Lone Star and Gulf Coast ticks in parts of Iowa where these arachnids had not previously been documented by their research program.
Evolutionary History of Old World Cellar Spiders in the Context of Neo-Tethyan Sea-Land Transformations
| Zhi-Yuan Yao and Shu-Qiang Li | Zoological Research | July 18, 2025
Researchers connect the evolutionary diversification and geographic distribution of Old World cellar spiders with ancient geological changes surrounding the Neo-Tethys Ocean.
Student Research Leads to a Major Discovery
| Calvin University | Calvin News | June 13, 2025
Undergraduate tick surveillance led to detection of the invasive Asian longhorned tick at Grand Mere State Park in Michigan.
A Step in Fight Against Tick-Borne Disease
| Clea Simon | Harvard Gazette | June 11, 2025
Researchers developed a molecular method that identifies the sex of blacklegged ticks and determines whether females have mated, information that could improve tick-control strategies.
55 New Species of Wishbone Spiders Discovered
| University of Western Australia | UWA News | April 14, 2025
A major revision of Australian wishbone spiders identified 55 species previously unknown to science across eastern Australia.
55 New-to-Science Species of Wishbone Spider
| Queensland Museum | Queensland Museum | April 14, 2025
Museum scientists documented dozens of new Aname wishbone spiders and showed that the genus is considerably more diverse than previously recognized.
New Master Architects of the Spider World Discovered in the Kimberley
| University of Western Australia | UWA News | March 27, 2025
Two new trapdoor spider species discovered in northern Australia's Kimberley region expand the known range and diversity of the genus Kwonkan.
Arachnid in Your Orchid? Ornamental Plant Trade Risks Spreading Invasive Species
| Kristine Sabillo | Mongabay | March 21, 2025
Research highlights how international plant shipments can unintentionally transport spiders and other small arachnids into new ecosystems.
The Most Poisonous Spider in the World Includes 3 Different Species
| University of Hamburg Newsroom | University of Hamburg | January 13, 2025
Research revealed that spiders formerly grouped under the Sydney funnel-web name actually represent three species, including a newly recognized species.
Pseudoscorpions and Other Scary-Looking Minibeasts
| Natural History Museum | Natural History Museum | Undated
The Natural History Museum explains the ecology of pseudoscorpions, tiny arachnids whose venomous pincers capture mites, insect larvae and other minute prey.
Arachnids and Human Perception
Scared of Spiders? The Real Horror Story Is a World Without Them
| University of Massachusetts Amherst | Phys.org | March 2, 2026
Ecologists emphasize the essential roles spiders and other arachnids play in food webs and biological pest control while documenting major conservation-data gaps.
The World's Most Extreme Spiders
| Natural History Museum | Natural History Museum | Undated
A collection of Natural History Museum resources explores spider diversity, extraordinary adaptations, venom, fossils and evolutionary history.
