Creature Feature: Arachnophoboia

Welcome to the tenth title of our Creature Feature series! In this series of articles, we have been diving into the reasoning behind the names of each month, and connecting them to creatures found in nature. 

The name meaning behind the month of October is quite simple: octo is the Latin word for “eight” and therefore would have represented the eighth month in the Roman calendar. Similar to the month of September (last month’s Creature Feature edition), the name for this month has remained largely unchanged since the time of the Romans. In honour of the number eight, we will look into some examples of our eight-legged creatures, otherwise known as arachnids .  

Spiders

With over fifty thousand species found throughout the world, spiders are generally the first creatures that come to mind whenever one thinks about what an arachnid looks like, as they come in many shapes and sizes. The vast majority of spiders are venomous to some capacity, this is so that spiders are able to subdue prey caught in a web, or while hunting. While that may sound intimidating, in reality there are only a few dozen species of spider that possess venom strong enough to significantly harm humans. Some local examples for the midwestern United States include the northern black widow (Latrodectus variolus) and the brown recluse (Loxosceles reclusa).

In addition to having eight legs, spiders have an additional pair of smaller appendages near the front of the head. These appendages are called pedipalps, and they are used by spiders to hold food, for sense, and to detect vibrations. Additionally, all spiders have the ability to produce silk, but many species chose not to make any intricate webs with it.

Ticks

These arachnids, that we all know and love, are parasitic. More similar to mites than spiders, ticks depend on other organisms by attaching itself to its host and then proceeding to feed on their blood over a long period of time. In many cases, ticks latch on to a host by waiting near the tip of a plant, and stretching its front legs out as it senses its target moving through the vegetation. Once the target is in contact range, the tick then clings onto the host and then crawls to find a suitable spot to begin its feeding. A unique feature that ticks possess on one of their legs is a structure known as Haller’s organ. This organ gives the tick the ability to detect various things such as odors, chemicals, temperature changes, and more. 

Due to their nature of feeding on blood, there are instances where certain species of ticks can introduce ailments and illnesses to the human body, such as the bacteria that causes Lyme disease. Therefore, it is important to check yourself for ticks after hiking or extensive time outside during their active seasons.

Scorpions

We might not have these in the state of Michigan, but they are cool to talk about nonetheless! Scorpions are arachnids famous for their stinger at the end of their metasoma (the structure that looks like a tail). Many species are adapted to dry and desert-like environments, but they can be found on every continent minus Antarctica. Like their spider cousins, even though all scorpions are venomous, only a few dozen species out of the two thousand plus species discovered are considered dangerous for humans. These are predatory arachnids that will prey upon insects, arthropods, and small vertebrates.

One final fun fact to leave you with: all species of scorpion give off a blue-green coloration when exposed to an ultraviolet lightsource! This ability, known as fluorescence, is due to the scorpion having a layer in its exoskeleton that is able to absorb the incoming ultraviolet light. 

Fishing Spider

Deer Tick

Scorpion species