What Causes the Distinct Smell of Spiders?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the distinct smell associated with spiders, exploring its origins and implications. Participants share personal experiences and hypotheses regarding the nature of this smell, including potential links to spider behavior and pheromones.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested

Main Points Raised

  • Some participants recall a pungent smell associated with spiders, particularly large garden spiders, likening it to insecticides.
  • Others express skepticism about the existence of such a smell, questioning whether it is perceptible to everyone.
  • There are suggestions that the smell might be due to pheromones secreted by spiders or possibly from decaying insect bodies they have captured.
  • One participant mentions the idea of spiders using scents to attract prey, referencing a specific example of the Bird-dropping Spider that mimics moth pheromones.
  • Humor is present in the discussion, with some participants joking about the topic and their experiences with spiders.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the existence or nature of the smell of spiders. Multiple competing views and hypotheses are presented, with some participants affirming the smell while others deny it.

Contextual Notes

Some claims about spider behavior and pheromones remain speculative, and there is uncertainty regarding the sensory perception of the smell among different individuals.

Ivan Seeking
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The other day I was clearing out some stuff for a dump run when I noticed the smell of spiders. And sure enough they were there - a bunch of biggons.

I remember this smell from my childhood when I would sometimes play with spiders. I liked to feed them flies and moths so that I could watch them attack and eat. :-p

But then I began to wonder about this: What is that smell?
 
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It is rather pungent and makes me think of a poisons like insecticides. Also, it seems that I mostly notice it around large garden spiders.
 
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I've never noticed a smell of spiders. Do you have to be a gray to smell it? :biggrin:

Possibly it's a pheromone they secrete, or maybe it's not really the spiders, per se, but the decaying bodies of insects they've captured? Do spiders secrete anything that would "bait" other insects to the web? I don't know if they rely entirely on chance and a good location to get insects trapped in their webs, or if they have some sort of attractant that helps lure them to it.
 
These spider threads are freaking me out!
 
We've always had a spider problem at PF. Slurp spider infestations are common.
 
Math Is Hard said:
Slurp spider infestations are common.
Math_Is_Hardcore,can you elaborate that?
 
tehno said:
Math_Is_Hardcore,can you elaborate that?

They're just web crawlers. Search engines use 'em for indexing. Apparently they are smarter than they used to be...

http://www.searchengineposition.com/info/articles/YahooReleaseNewCrawler.asp

one really smart one even joined PF and posted for a while! (sorry, I can no longer find that link - it was verrry funny :smile: )
 
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Moonbear said:
I've never noticed a smell of spiders. Do you have to be a gray to smell it? :biggrin:

I KNEW that YOU were going to say that! :smile:

Possibly it's a pheromone they secrete, or maybe it's not really the spiders, per se, but the decaying bodies of insects they've captured? Do spiders secrete anything that would "bait" other insects to the web? I don't know if they rely entirely on chance and a good location to get insects trapped in their webs, or if they have some sort of attractant that helps lure them to it.

I remember thinking as a kid that I was smelling the venom. :biggrin:

The idea of a scent intended to attract prey is interesting.
 
Yikes enough with the spider threads lol. I would imagine it is just a pheromone they are producing.Some spiders will secrete a pheremone that attracts insects, one seems particularily effective against male moths:

"The Bird-dropping Spider also uses mimicry of a quite different sort to capture its prey, which consist almost exclusively of male moths. At night the Bird-dropping Spider hangs from the edge of a leaf or twig on a short silk thread, its forelegs outstretched. While doing this it releases a chemical scent (pheromone) that mimics the airborne sex pheromone released by female moths to attract their mates. The unfortunate male moths that are attracted by the spider's deceiving pheromone eventually flutter close enough to the spider to be grabbed by its strong front legs."

http://www.amonline.net.au/factSheets/bird_dropping_spider.htm
 
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