How Many Legs Spider Has

Introduction

Spiders are fascinating creatures that have unique anatomy. They are present in almost every continent on earth. Spiders have the distinctive capability to weave elaborate strong webs using silk-like strands created from bodily secretions, that they weave themselves to trap their prey. Read further to know more about how many legs spiders have.

How many legs do spiders have?

Spiders have a total of eight walking legs and each leg has seven segments.

Spiders are not insects

Spiders are often mistakenly classified as insects. Although both spiders and insects belong to the same Phylum Arthropoda and share a common ancestry, there are many differences between the two. Insects belong to the Class Insecta. They have six legs, three body segments (head, thorax, and abdomen), a pair of compounded eyes, a pair of antennae, and four wings. The wings and three pairs of legs in insects are attached to the thorax or middle part of the body.

On the other hand, spiders belong to the Class Arachnida. They have eight legs, and two distinct body segments - a fused head and thorax called cephalothorax and an unsegmented abdomen. The legs of the spider are attached to their cephalothorax. They have four pairs of simple eyes and lack antennae or wings.

Is it true that some spiders have 10 legs?

This is a myth. Spiders have only eight walking legs. However, they also have a pair of short appendage-like structures around their fang area called pedipalps that they use as sensory organs and to hold prey. These pedipalps are often confused with legs. Hence, many people think spiders have ten legs.

The legs of spiders are multifunctional

Spiders use their four pairs of legs not only for locomotion and getting around, but also to perform a variety of other functions. They use their legs to pull silk from their mouth glands and then weave the silk from outside towards the inside with their legs to create the web. The legs of the spider help them weave the silk in concentric circles till it reaches the centre patch which traps their prey. Their legs also have the ability to detect subtle vibrations across their webs which alert the spider to the presence of prey. Spiders' legs also help them pin down and trap their prey so they can inject their venom with their fangs. They also work their legs to defend themselves from predators by spreading their in front as an intimidation tactic or by using them to counter-attack predators.