Extraordinary creatures: jumping spiders

There are almost 7000 species of jumping spider on the planet, with the family comprising 10–13% of all spiders. Found on all continents except Antarctica, they can live at altitudes of up to 7000 m and are even capable of surviving under water, thanks to hydrophobic hairs that hold a bubble of air around the cuticle. They vary in size from 2 mm up to 25 mm from front to back, with the largest species, Hyllus giganteus, found throughout Southeast Asia. The spiderlings essentially balloon, by spinning electrostatically charged strands of silk that can carry them enormous distances, even travelling from Australia to New Zealand, 3000 km away. They have also done away with many muscles, relying instead on hydrostatic pressure to pneumatically extend their limbs, making them extremely metabolically efficient. Ximena Nelson, University of Canterbury, New Zealand, has been investigating the vision of these extraordinary creatures for 30 years. She tells Journal of Experimental Biology how they hunt, attract a mate and how their multiple eyes provide them with an extraordinarily detailed 360 deg view of the world.