Spider silk research. Female golden orb spider (Nephila sp.) strapped down and producing silk for research. The Nephila spiders are a tropical genus w

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Spider silk research. Female golden orb spider (Nephila sp.) strapped down and producing silk for research. The Nephila spiders are a tropical genus which spin enormous webs up to two metres across. Their silk is amongst the strongest known, and their webs often catch small birds. The silk is harvested by being wound onto the spool seen at upper right. Spider silk is, weight for weight, stronger than steel. It is hoped that studying the structure of the silk will lead to new methods of producing artificial fibres of a similar strength.

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Size: 3674px × 2480px
Photo credit: © PASCAL GOETGHELUCK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: animal, arachnida, golden, harvest, invertebrates, nature, nephila, orb, research, silk, sp., spider, vivisection, wildlife, zoology