- cross-posted to:
- nature@feddit.uk
- cross-posted to:
- nature@feddit.uk
The UK’s largest breed of spiders, which can grow to the size of rats and hunts fish, are making a comeback in Britain.
From near-extinction in 2010 - when only a handful remained as their wetland homes were destroyed by humans - the number of fen raft spiders are now steadily increasing thanks to recent conservation efforts.
The spiders are set to have their best year on record at nature reserves ran by RSBP.
The conservation charity revealed that the most recent survey estimates the total number of female spiders to be up to 3,750 across 12 sites in Norfolk and Suffolk Broads alone.
The spider can spin a web as large as 25cm and can grow to the size of a man’s hand.
- bizarroland ( @bizarroland@fedia.io ) 15•1 month ago
This is going to be really great for my next level one restart. I’m going to be able to get so much xp as soon as I get my hands on a dagger and a clumsily constructed wooden shield.
- apotheotic (she/her) ( @apotheotic@beehaw.org ) English15•1 month ago
That’s so nice! I’m so happy for them! Is there a map of exactly where they’re making a comeback so I can avoid those places particularly!
- flamingos-cant ( @flamingos@feddit.uk ) English13•1 month ago
Time to push the country into the sun.
- ns1 ( @ns1@feddit.uk ) English9•1 month ago
Always uplifting to see a struggling native species doing well. Hope I get to see one of these beauties up close one day, shame they are still limited to just a few locations.
- tal ( @tal@lemmy.today ) English6•1 month ago
And it was that very summer, when taking a leisurely swim in one of Britain’s lakes, that ns1 got his wish, his face surfacing directly underneath an alarmed seven-centimeter giant raft spider on the hunt.
- ns1 ( @ns1@feddit.uk ) English1•1 month ago
Don’t think I’d want to subject the poor spider to that, however funny it would be for onlookers!
- HEXN3T ( @HEXN3T@lemmy.blahaj.zone ) English8•1 month ago
Wet Australia
- 10_0 ( @10_0@lemmy.ml ) English8•1 month ago
I have a large garden spider in my house, me and it have a policy, out of sight out of deaths reach. If a spider the size of that thumbnail enters my house, there will be no places to hide, I will kos. Besides there are no rats here only flies.
- bizarroland ( @bizarroland@fedia.io ) 2•1 month ago
Up until recently I had cedar roofing and when I pulled it off there were so many spiders that got unhomed. I felt bad about that especially since I put a metal roof on and there’s nowhere for them to hide now.
The spiders got their revenge though because after I unhomed all of the spiders that were protecting my house I started getting ants or the occasional bug here or there.
Fortunately, the spiders have now moved under my decks and into the cedar siding on the house and they are once again protecting my house from unwanted pests.
I love me some spiders, I don’t want to touch them I don’t want to deal with them but when I see them hanging out I’m like cool thanks for taking care of the place my friend.
- j4yt33 ( @j4yt33@feddit.org ) English8•1 month ago
Wikipedia says “70 mm including the legs” btw. So not even close to the size of a rat
- Echo Dot ( @echodot@feddit.uk ) English5•1 month ago
They are the size of rats the size of spiders.
- j4yt33 ( @j4yt33@feddit.org ) English2•1 month ago
Can’t argue with that
Could be a baby rat.
- TorJansson ( @TorJansson@lemm.ee ) English1•1 month ago
Doesn’t matter, arm thyself with a flamethrower anyway
- j4yt33 ( @j4yt33@feddit.org ) English7•1 month ago
No
- tal ( @tal@lemmy.today ) English4•1 month ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_raft_spider
In October 2010 the first introduction of a great raft spider population into a new site in the UK was carried out in a joint project by Natural England and Suffolk Wildlife Trust and supported by a grant from the BBC Wildlife Fund. The project saw around 3000 spiderlings bred and reared by Dr. Helen Smith and the John Innes Centre, 1600 of which were released into suitable dykes at the Suffolk Wildlife Trust Castle Marshes nature reserve. The site is part of the Suffolk Broads and lies 50 kilometres (31 mi) downstream, from Redgrave and Lopham fen, between Lowestoft and Beccles. Work was carried out to improve the ditch network at the site to prepare for the reintroduction and provide optimal habitat for the new spider population.
Dr. Helen Smith knew that the one great problem with the UK was an insufficient number of giant spiders running around, and she intended to remedy that.
Each spiderling was hand reared in separate test tubes and fed with fruit flies.
“Eat. Eat and grow large and strong.”
- pseudo ( @pseudo@jlai.lu ) English4•1 month ago
But can they eat rats?
It can eat them but catching and killing might be trickier.
- Mex ( @Mex@feddit.uk ) English3•1 month ago
a power struggle between the spiders and rats begins, with each slowly growing bigger to outpower each other, years pass and we have dog sized spider and rats, and dog kind joins in… a few years later we have cow sized spiders,rats, and dogs… it never ends.
- pseudo ( @pseudo@jlai.lu ) English3•1 month ago
And one day if rats and spiders breed, I will be remember in History as the personn who reintroduce dragons in my country 😨
- Wahots ( @Wahots@pawb.social ) English3•1 month ago
Christ, now I know why my ancestors moved to the US, haha.
- tobogganablaze ( @tobogganablaze@lemmus.org ) English5•1 month ago
I hope it wasn’t to try to escape fishing spiders because the US has 9 from the same genus. And Dolomedes tenebrosus is even larger than our European ones.
- SplashJackson ( @SplashJackson@lemmy.ca ) English1•1 month ago
Where’s saint Patrick when we need him?