Spider Biology

About this book

This book is based on the well-established book Biology of Spiders, published in three editions by Cambridge University Press, but is completely updated. It focuses on the biology and natural history of spiders in general – it does not deal with the identification of spiders. Virtually all aspects of spider biology are covered, from anatomy and physiology to neurobiology and behaviour, or from spider venom to prey capture, and from silk production to complex web construction. The book will appeal not only to spider enthusiasts, professional arachnologists and zoologists, but to anyone with an interest in biology. It is written in a clear and straightforward style, making it easy to read for the general reader.

Contents

- Preface
- Introduction
- Functional anatomy
- Metabolism
- Neurobiology
- Spider Webs
- Locomotion and Prey Capture
- Reproduction
- Development
- Ecology
- Phylogeny

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Biography

Rainer F. Foelix (1943) studied Natural Sciences in Germany (University of Erlangen) and Switzerland (University of Zurich) from 1962 to 1968 and received his PhD in Zoology in 1969. He then spent five years as a postdoctoral researcher in the USA (North Carolina), where he began his spider research in the laboratory of Peter Witt, who had discovered the influence of drugs on spider webs. However, his focus was more on functional anatomy and neurobiology, especially on the sensory organs of web spiders. These studies were later expanded on ticks (Entomology Dept. NCSU) and other arachnid orders such as scorpions and whip spiders at the Ruhr University Bochum, Germany.

His first book on spiders was published in German (Biologie der Spinnen) in 1979 and in English in 1982, and quickly became the reference book on spiders. Later positions (after 1982) were held at the Anatomy and Zoology Departments of the University of Fribourg (Switzerland) and finally as Curator of the Natural History Museum in Aarau (Switzerland) (until 2008). Even after his retirement, his research on spiders continued, with numerous original arachnological publications appearing over a period of 50 years.