Baby Spiders by Thousands

Baby spiders by thousands found along a stream at Balik Pulau, Penang, Malaysia. The rate of survival must be very slim for these spiders. They are food for birds, other spiders, etc. The animal kingdom is facinating.

Closeup of the spiders

Tarantula

Tarantula is the common name for a group of "hairy" and often very large spiders belonging to the family Theraphosidae, of which approximately 900 species have been identified. Tarantulas hunt prey in both trees and on the ground. All tarantulas can emit silk, whether they be arboreal or terrestrial species. Arboreal species will typically reside in a silken "tube web", and terrestrial species will line their burrows or lairs with web to catch wandering prey. They mainly eat insects and other arthropods, using ambush as their primary method. The biggest tarantulas can kill animals as large as lizards, mice, or birds. Most tarantulas are harmless to humans, and some species are popular in the exotic pet trade while others are eaten as food. These spiders are found in tropical and desert regions around the world.

The name tarantula comes from the town of Taranto in Southern Italy and was originally used for an unrelated species of either European wolf spider (See Lycosa tarantula for more information about this spider the appearance of which resembles that of that tarantula family) or the Mediterranean black widow (the effects of whose bite more closely resemble that described in Taranto). In Africa, Theraphosids are frequently referred to as "baboon spiders". Asian forms are known as "earth tigers" or "bird spiders". Australians refer to their species as "barking spiders", "whistling spiders," or "bird spiders". People in other parts of the world also apply the general name "mygales" to Theraphosid spiders. (Source: Wikipedia)

Spiders From Mount Oliver Hike, Penang

You can find spiders everywhere in Malaysia if you look with your sharp eyes. You can find them on the forest floor, under a leaf, on a leaf, inside a hole, on sandy river bank....anywhere.

This spider found on a leaf.

This spider found on the forest litter.

Under a leaf.

Spider searches high and low for insect.

Orb-weaver Spiders - Araneidae

Orb-weaver spider or orb-web spider usually has large abdomen. These orb-weaver spiders hang upside down with different web styles for different prey. Orb web spiders have poor vision but are very sensitive to vibration. Any prey touching the web will be responded with the pull from the spider.

Spiders - Introduction

Here is the brief write up about spiders:

Spiders are predatory invertebrate animals that have two body segments, eight legs, no chewing mouth parts and no wings. They are classified in the order Araneae, one of several orders within the larger class of arachnids, a group which also contains scorpions, whip scorpions, mites, ticks, and opiliones (harvestmen). The study of spiders is known as arachnology.

All spiders produce silk, a thin, strong protein strand extruded by the spider from spinnerets most commonly found on the end of the abdomen. Many species use it to trap insects in webs, although there are also many species that hunt freely. Silk can be used to aid in climbing, form smooth walls for burrows, build egg sacs, wrap prey, and temporarily hold sperm, among other applications.

All spiders except those in the families Uloboridae and Holarchaeidae, and in the suborder Mesothelae (together about 350 species) can inject venom to protect themselves or to kill and liquefy prey. Only about 200 species, however, have bites that can pose health problems to humans.[1] Many larger species' bites may be quite painful, but will not produce lasting health concerns.

Spiders are found all over the world, from the tropics to the Arctic, living underwater in silken domes they supply with air, and on the tops of mountains. In 1973 Skylab 3 took two spiders into space to test their web-spinning capability in free-fall.

Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spider