Spiders act like guitarists to sound out what is happening in their webs, scientists have discovered.
They obtain vital information, such as the potentially deadly intentions of a prospective mate, by plucking the fine strands of silk and listening to their vibrations.
Researchers conducted tests that involved firing bullet-like projectiles and lasers at spider silk to study how it behaves.
They found that the gossamer threads act much like guitar strings, vibrating across a wide range of frequencies.
Spiders ‘hear’ the vibrations with ear-like organs called slit sensillae on each of their legs.
Researcher Beth Mortimer, from Oxford University, said: "Most spiders have poor eyesight and rely almost exclusively on the vibration of the silk in their web for sensory information.
"The sound of silk can tell them what type of meal is entangled in their net and about the intentions and quality of a prospective mate.
“By plucking the silk like a guitar string and listening to the 'echoes' the spider can also assess the condition of its web."
She added: "It may even be that spiders set out to make a web that 'sounds right' as its sonic properties are intimately related to factors such as strength and flexibility."
The scientists used high speed cameras to film spider silk threads being struck by projectiles and used lasers to measure even the smallest vibrations.
Professor Fritz Vollrath, another member of the Oxford team, said: "These findings further demonstrate the outstanding properties of many spider silks that are able to combine exceptional toughness with the ability to transfer delicate information.
"These are traits that would be very useful in light-weight engineering and might lead to novel, built-in 'intelligent' sensors and actuators."
The findings are due to appear in the Journal of Advanced Materials.
Co-author Dr Chris Holland, from the University of Sheffield, said: "Spider silks are well known for their impressive mechanical properties, but the vibrational properties have been relatively overlooked and now we find that they are also an awesome communication tool.
“Yet again spiders continue to impress us in more ways than we can imagine."
