Beacon Transcript

Information which Matters to You

Wednesday, January 20, 2021
Log in
  • National News
  • National News
  • Business
  • Business
  • Technology
  • Technology
  • Health
  • Health
  • Science
  • Science
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Authors & Contributors
    • Privacy Policy GDPR
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Authors & Contributors
    • Privacy Policy GDPR

Recent Articles

Ancient Babylonian Clay Tablet Holds the First Trigonometric Table

Ancient Babylonian Clay Tablet Holds the First Trigonometric Table

August 26, 2017 By Clayton Meason

The CDC Draws Attention To The Spike In Cyclosporiasis Cases

The CDC Draws Attention To The Spike In Cyclosporiasis Cases

August 11, 2017 By Troy G. Bennett

Travis Kalanick Resigns from His Position as Uber’s CEO

Travis Kalanick Resigns from His Position as Uber’s CEO

June 22, 2017 By Troy G. Bennett

Amazon Refunds Parents Whose Children Made Purchases Without Permission

Amazon Refunds Parents Whose Children Made Purchases Without Permission

June 2, 2017 By Clayton Meason

McDonald’s Has Been Quietly Altering Its Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe

McDonald’s Has Been Quietly Altering Its Vanilla Ice Cream Recipe

May 21, 2017 By Jennifer Licata

Washington Post Will Be Expanding Its Newsroom

Washington Post Will Be Expanding Its Newsroom

December 28, 2016 By Troy G. Bennett

The Spider with the Fastest Jaws in the World

April 8, 2016 By Gary Wymore

Email, RSS Follow
Trap-Jaw Spider

The trap-jaw spider has the ability of closing its jaws at lightning speed.

Scientists have found a spider family that can snap their jaws shut faster than their muscles can allow, which makes them the spiders with the fastest jaws in the world. This is the way the newly-discovered type of arachnid hunts its prey.

Known as trap-jaw spiders or Chilarchaea quellon, the creatures belong to a superfamily with a bizarre anatomy that has evolved to make them more effective when hunting. The study on the spiders was published in the Current Biology journal last Thursday and explores the causes of the anatomical change in the arachnids.

According to lead author Hannah Wood, who is a scientist at the Smithsonian, the little spider simply waits to detect the movement of their prey. Next, they start stalking the unfortunate creature by using their first legs as antennae, waving them around on both the ground and in the air. She further explained that

“When they’re in close proximity to the prey, they open their chelicerae and hold them open while they’re searching. When the prey is close enough, the chelicerae snap closed.”

The chelicerae are mouth parts similar to jaws that are highly maneuverable and have different roles for various spider families. For instance, the pelican spiders use them to attack from a distance. However, they never evolved to develop the power of trap-jaws to close their jaws at lightning speed, named by scientists Mecysmaucheniidae.

Researchers plan to understand the whole process, including the source of their energy and how it is released in such a burst of power that surpasses the one of muscles. Wood has compared it with a rubber band that is pulled back and then quickly flicks forward.

However, the whole case is quite mysterious. Trap-jaws were only found in the wild with prey in their jaws five times. None of these had the powerful ability to amplify their capability. The prey they were discovered consuming consisted of other spiders, a trend that is common in this superfamily composed of pelicans, trap-jaws and three other.

Back in the laboratory, Wood has noticed that only spiders with power amplification were willing to eat springtails, as opposed to those without the ability that feasted upon flies. This is a clear proof that the trap-jaws have evolved in order to catch fast-moving prey.

Image Source: Gizmodo

Email, RSS Follow

Filed Under: Science Tagged With: arachnid, The Spider with the Fastest Jaws in the World, trap-jaw

Recent Posts

  • Security Guard List As Suspect in 1974 Stanford University Chapel Slaying Kills Himself June 29, 2018
  • Texas Teens Arrested After Decomposing Body of Elderly Woman Found in Garage June 28, 2018
  • Montana Woman in Custody After Forcing Ex to Have Sex with Her June 27, 2018
  • Newly Released Audio Transcript Proves Monalisa Perez Objected to Deadly YouTube Prank June 26, 2018
  • Virginia Woman Shoots New Zealand Man Who Smashed Glass Door with Brick   June 26, 2018
  • Arizona Woman Lied About Kidnapping to Cover Boyfriend’s Slaying June 25, 2018
  • Brooklyn Man Arrested in Niagara Falls Allegedly Chopped off Pregnant Wife’s Arms with Steak Knife June 25, 2018

Related Articles

  • jupiter with the biggest moon of jupiter, ganymede, in front, a satellite, and three moons

    Ganymede, the Biggest Moon of Jupiter, is Revealing New Data (Study)

    May 8, 2018
  • segment of the bayeux tapestry which includes halley's comet

    Medieval Tapestries and Old Scrolls to Offer Proof of the Existence of Planet Nine?

    May 7, 2018
  • stars and galaxies in the universe

    Large-Scale Map of the Universe Reveals Thousands of Early Galaxies (Study)

    Apr 10, 2018
  • landscape view of the milky way and a space observatory

    The Milky Way Might be Getting Bigger, Believes a New Study

    Apr 5, 2018
  • NASA’s Odyssey Captures New Images of Phobos and Deimos, the Moons of Mars

    Feb 27, 2018
  • old book of shakespeare plays open to a page with his image

    Software Reveals Possible Inspiration for 11 Shakespeare Plays

    Feb 14, 2018
  • praying mantis on black background

    Praying Mantis and 3D Glasses Help Discover A New Form of Vision

    Feb 12, 2018
  • two men sitting squatting and looking at the oman desert

    Mars Simulation Tests, Conducted in the Oman Desert

    Feb 9, 2018
  • indian stone tools on grey background

    Ancient Indian Stone Tools Reveal New Things about Humanity (Study)

    Feb 5, 2018
  • Naked mole rats.

    Naked Mole Rats Are Not Affected by Aging, New Study Reveals

    Jan 29, 2018

Categories

  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Health
  • National News
  • Nature
  • Science
  • Stocks
  • Technology
  • US
  • World

Copyright © 2021 beacontranscript.com

About · Privacy Policy · Terms of Use · Contact

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Learn more.