Spiders Actually Have This Ability That Terrifies People

Add this to web slinging and wall climbing and you have one scary, little creature.

Transcript

00:00Spiders are known for their uncanny abilities to climb walls and sling web, but now, according

00:09to a new study by researchers from Birmingham University in the UK, some are also pretty

00:13good scuba divers.

00:15This is the Tricallia extensa, a newly discovered spider species from Costa Rica.

00:20Researchers discovered the creature in a stream, a place that would normally spell death for

00:24an arachnid, with lead researcher biologist Lindsay Swearek explaining, for a lot of species,

00:29getting wet and cold is almost as risky to survival as dealing with their predators to

00:34begin with.

00:35But Tricallia extensa didn't seem to mind.

00:37In fact, they observed it chilling out under the surface of the stream for some 32 minutes.

00:42The researchers say the spider is likely doing it to hide from danger, but what's really

00:45cool is that the water-repelling hairs covering the spider's body actually create a film

00:50of air around it, protecting it from the water's chill and perhaps providing it with air to

00:54breathe as well.