Masters of Aquatic Survival: The Astounding Techniques of Water Spiders | Wildlife in Warm Regions | God's Creation in Nature |

 The Bell Spider's Diving Technique

The water spider of the warm regions of asia and africa spend a lot of their time under water, and so make their nests in the water.

In order to build its nest, the spider first of all constructs a platform between plant stems or leaves in the water. It attaches the platform to the stems with silk threads. These threads indicate to the spider the way back to its home, stabilise the platform, and also work like radar, giving warning of approach of prey.

After constructing the platform, the carries air bubbles under it with its legs and truck. In this way the web swells upwards, and as more air is added, it takes on the appearance of a bell. This "bell" is the nest where the spider lives.

By day the spider waits in its nest. Should any small animals pass by, especially an insect or a larva, it rushes out, grabs it, and drags it back to the nest to consume. An insect falling on to the surface of the water sets off vibrations. The spider sense these these, goes up to the surface, seizes the insect and drags it beneath the water. The spider even uses a web on the surface of the water. It makes no distinction between an insect which falls into his and ant other victim.

As winter approaches, the spider has to take precautions if it is not to freeze. For this reason, as winter draws near, the water-spider goes down deeper. This time it builds a winter bell and fill the inside of it with air. Some other spiders move into empty sea-snail shells. It never moves inside the bell, and expends hardly any energy throughout the whole winter. This is to conserve energy and so reduce its need for oxygen. These precautions mean that the air bubbles it carries to the bell can last it for the 4-5 winter months.

As we have seen, the spider's air bubble and hunting methods are the idea way for a spider to be able to live under water. It is impossible for a living creature to find a way of living under water by chance. If a creature does not have the features necessary for living under water, then it will drown the first time it enters the water. It will not have time to wait live under water by virtue of having the right skills to do so, owes its existence to emergence of such skills. And this shows us that the water-spider, with these distinctive characteristic and abilities, was created by God in a perfect manner