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Home » Forums » General Discussion

Weird massive spider web mystery

We were driving from Corvallis, OR, to Eugene today in the Willamette Valley, and saw the strangest thing. We first noticed long bits of cobwebby stuff floating in the air, and then noticed 6-10 foot long streamers of spiderweb festooning the overhead power lines along the road anywhere there weren't trees immediately by the road (presumably the trees were full of them at those places). We were travelling past patchy farmland, with frequent stands of oak and maple, parallel to the Wilamette River. This went on for about 20 miles! And the webs were pretty thick the whole way. I wish I had had my camera. I did get a picture of some of the web that stuck to our car's antenna, and it sure looks like spider web. Any idea what could have produced it on such a scale? Could there have just been a massive hatch this late in the year? Weather-wise, we are having a few warm sunny days after several cooler rainy days.
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Contributed by Kevin Prier on 22 October, 2006 - 10:58pm

"Ballooning"
You may have observed the phenomenon of 'gossamer' silk, produced by spiderlings that are "ballooning." Ballooning is a method spiders use to disperse, usually when they are quite young. A spider simply climbs to a high point, directs its abdomen into the air, and begins issuing long strands of silk. Eventually, a breeze catches the lines of silk, and away the spider goes:-) At some point the spider gloms onto a new perch, and the silk detaches, accounting for the streamers that you were seeing. That said, it might have been some other kind of phenomenon of course.
… Eric R. Eaton, 23 October, 2006 - 12:04pm login or register to post comments

 
Ballooning
Yeah, I know about ballooning. What amazed me was the sheer numbers of the things. They were thick on the overhead lines, and it really went on for over 20 miles. It was really beautiful in the sunlight, but rather unsettling thinking about how many millions of spiders there must have been to produce it all. Has anyone heard of anything on this scale?
… Kevin Prier, 23 October, 2006 - 9:48pm login or register to post comments

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