- 1.
Determinations were made of several physical properties of the viscid and frame silks of the orb-webs built by the spider Araneus sericatus (Cl.).
- 2.
Both types of silk show a breaking stress of approximately 1 GN/m2 and an initial resilience of approximately 0.35.
- 3.
The breaking extension ratio of viscid silk (λ = 3.00) is much greater than that of frame silk (λ = 1.25), and the viscid silk relaxes to a relatively greater extent.
- 4.
These properties are correlated with the degree of crystallization of the protein from which the silk is made, this factor being controlled by the sequence of amino acids in the protein.
- 5.
The physical properties of the viscid and frame silks allow them to function effectively as shock absorbers and structural elements, respectively; and allow the orb-web to function as an aerial filter with a minimum expenditure of material and energy.
In the field: an interview with Harald Wolf
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In our new Conversation, Harald Wolf talks about his fieldwork experiences working with desert ants in Tunisia to understand their navigation.
Propose a new Workshop
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Our Workshops bring together leading experts and early-career researchers from a range of scientific backgrounds. Applications are now open to propose Workshops for 2024, one of which will be held in a Global South country.
Julian Dow steps down and John Terblanche joins the JEB team
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After 15 years with the journal, Julian Dow from University of Glasgow, UK, is stepping down as a Monitoring Editor. We wish Julian all the best for the future and welcome John Terblanche, Stellenbosch University, South Africa, who is joining the team. Julian talks about his long association with The Company of Biologists and the journal and John tells us about his life and career in this News article.
The capture of crude oil droplets by filter feeders at high and low Reynolds numbers
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Researchers from the University of Montreal, Canada, reveal how tiny filter feeding barnacles and Daphnia entrap and consume minute droplets of crude oil, introducing the pollutant at the bottom of the food chain.
Patterns and processes in amphibious fish
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In their Review, Keegan Lutek, Cassandra Donatelli and Emily Standen discuss the biomechanics and neural control of terrestrial locomotion in amphibious fish. They explore how locomotor mode depends on body shape, physical constraints and phylogeny.
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