Yu-Heng Lin, the first author of the study, places a tarp over the webs to protect them from the rain and observe the effect. On the right is an orb web from the genus Argiope.. Credit: Emilia Luzuriaga Cáceres and Yu-Heng Lin/UBC
In the dense forests of the Ecuadorian Andes, the survival of a spider relies not only on its ability to prey on insects but also on its capacity to resist a threat coming from the skies. A new study revealed that the heavy rainfall that hits the region acts as an "ecological filter," bombarding spider webs and, in the process, determining which species and silk architectures are able to master each environment.
Did Homo sapiens (left) and Neanderthals have shared culture?
S.PLAILLY/E.DAYNES/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
About 59,000 years ago, Homo sapiens moved into a coastal cave in Turkey that was previously home to Neanderthals. Yet the tools and trinkets found in the cave remained remarkably consistent, hinting that these ancient hominin species had a shared material culture.
