Fellow Scientists,I am happy to announce some exiting news.
In association with my ongoing mini series on things we can’t live without; It has come to my attention that the the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) will be opening an exciting exhibit this July 28th: Spiders Alive! It is an exhibit dedicated to the brilliance of our most renown eight legged engineers. It may be not well known that arachnids are known for being reclusive and have evolved over the ages to blend in to their environments. This new exhibit featuring live spiders will surely be an amazing site.
It has been mentioned by staff that creating a display-friendly habitat is just one important ingredient in this live exhibition. There will be a few human presenters and in some cases, hand held microscopes with projectors will be used to display small features of a spiders anatomy such as fangs and fine hairs. Proper handling will be demonstrated as well as why fearing spiders is exaggerated. Granted spiders are venomous, however their venom has evolved over time to work small insects rather than humans.
If any of my fellow scientists are in the area, I encourage you all to visit this fabulous exhibit opening up. As with any live show, there will always be an element of the unexpected. It would be interesting to watch these creatures work their ingenuity. The following picture is courtesy of AMNH…please explore these fascinating creatures! (Clicking on title will take you to a few other spiders featured by AMNH)
Spiders Alive by the American Museum of Natural History
A colorful Mexican red knee tarantula; this fabulous creature lives mainly on the Pacific coast of Mexico. © AMNH/R. Mickens