فَكُلًّا اَخَذۡنَا بِذَنۡۢبِهٖ ۚ فَمِنۡهُمۡ مَّنۡ اَرۡسَلۡنَا عَلَيۡهِ حَاصِبًا ۚ وَمِنۡهُمۡ مَّنۡ اَخَذَتۡهُ الصَّيۡحَةُ ۚ وَمِنۡهُمۡ مَّنۡ خَسَفۡنَا بِهِ الۡاَرۡضَ ۚ وَمِنۡهُمۡ مَّنۡ اَغۡرَقۡنَا ۚ وَمَا كَانَ اللّٰهُ لِيَـظۡلِمَهُمۡ وَلٰـكِنۡ كَانُوۡۤا اَنۡفُسَهُمۡ يَظۡلِمُوۡنَ ٤٠
مَثَلُ الَّذِيۡنَ اتَّخَذُوۡا مِنۡ دُوۡنِ اللّٰهِ اَوۡلِيَآءَ كَمَثَلِ الۡعَنۡكَبُوۡتِ ۖۚ اِتَّخَذَتۡ بَيۡتًا ؕ وَ اِنَّ اَوۡهَنَ الۡبُيُوۡتِ لَبَيۡتُ الۡعَنۡكَبُوۡتِۘ لَوۡ كَانُوۡا يَعۡلَمُوۡنَ ٤١
اِنَّ اللّٰهَ يَعۡلَمُ مَا يَدۡعُوۡنَ مِنۡ دُوۡنِهٖ مِنۡ شَىۡءٍؕ وَهُوَ الۡعَزِيۡزُ الۡحَكِيۡمُ ٤٢
وَتِلۡكَ الۡاَمۡثَالُ نَضۡرِبُهَا لِلنَّاسِۚ وَمَا يَعۡقِلُهَاۤ اِلَّا الۡعٰلِمُوۡنَ ٤٣
40 So each We seized for his sin; and among them were those upon whom We sent a storm of stones, and among them were those who were seized by the blast [from the sky], and among them were those whom We caused the earth to swallow, and among them were those whom We drowned. And Allāh would not have wronged them, but it was they who were wronging themselves.
41 The example of those who take allies other than Allāh is like that of the spider who takes [i.e., constructs] a home. And indeed, the weakest of homes is the home of the spider, if they only knew.
42 Indeed, Allāh knows whatever thing they call upon other than Him. And He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise.
43 And these examples We present to the people, but none will understand them except those of knowledge.
[Al-Quran The Spider ayaat 40-43, Translation: Saheeh International]
The Spider's Web
Spiders are famously known for the webs they build. According to Wikipedia page Spider sub-title Web types[as on January 18, 2023]:
There is no consistent relationship between the classification of spiders and the types of web they build: species in the same genus may build very similar or significantly different webs. Nor is there much correspondence between spiders' classification and the chemical composition of their silks. Convergent evolution in web construction, in other words use of similar techniques by remotely related species, is rampant. Orb web designs and the spinning behaviors that produce them are the best understood. The basic radial-then-spiral sequence visible in orb webs and the sense of direction required to build them may have been inherited from the common ancestors of most spider groups.[75] However, the majority of spiders build non-orb webs. It used to be thought that the sticky orb web was an evolutionary innovation resulting in the diversification of the Orbiculariae. Now, however, it appears that non-orb spiders are a subgroup that evolved from orb-web spiders, and non-orb spiders have over 40% more species and are four times as abundant as orb-web spiders. Their greater success may be because sphecid wasps, which are often the dominant predators of spiders, much prefer to attack spiders that have flat webs.[76]
According to Wikipedia page Spider web [as on January 18, 2023]:
A spider web, spiderweb, spider's web, or cobweb (from the archaic word coppe, meaning "spider")[1] is a structure created by a spider out of proteinaceous spider silk extruded from its spinnerets, generally meant to catch its prey.
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Webs allow a spider to catch prey without having to expend energy by running it down, making it an efficient method of gathering food. However these energy savings are somewhat offset by the fact that constructing the web is in itself energetically costly, due to the large amount of protein required in the form of silk. In addition, after a time the silk will lose its stickiness and thus become inefficient at capturing prey. It is common for spiders to eat their own web daily to recoup some of the energy used in spinning. Through ingestion and digestion, the silk proteins are thus recycled.
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Several different types of silk may be used in web construction, including a "sticky" capture silk and "fluffy" capture silk, depending on the type of spider. Webs may be in a vertical plane (most orb webs), a horizontal plane (sheet webs), or at any angle in between. It is hypothesized that these types of aerial webs co-evolved with the evolution of winged insects. As insects are spiders' main prey, it is likely that they would impose strong selectional forces on the foraging behavior of spiders.[3][9] Most commonly found in the sheet-web spider families, some webs will have loose, irregular tangles of silk above them. These tangled obstacle courses serve to disorient and knock down flying insects, making them more vulnerable to being trapped on the web below. They may also help to protect the spider from predators such as birds and wasps.[10] It is reported that several Nephila pilipes individuals can collectively construct an aggregated web system to counter bird predation from all directions.[11]
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Spiders do not usually adhere to their own webs, because they are able to spin both sticky and non-sticky types of silk, and are careful to travel across only non-sticky portions of the web. However, they are not immune to their own glue. Some of the strands of the web are sticky, and others are not. For example, if a spider has chosen to wait along the outer edges of its web, it may spin a non-sticky prey or signal line to the web hub to monitor web movement. However, in the course of spinning sticky strands, spiders have to touch these sticky strands. They do this without sticking by using careful movements, dense hairs and nonstick coatings on their feet to prevent adhesion.[17]
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Some spiders use their webs for hearing, where the giant webs function as extended and reconfigurable auditory sensors.[18]...
The stickiness of spiders' webs is due to droplets of glue suspended on the silk threads. These glue balls are multifunctional – that is, their behavior depends on how quickly something touching a glue ball attempts to withdraw. At high velocities, they function as an elastic solid, resembling rubber; at lower velocities, they simply act as a sticky glue. This allows them to retain a grip on attached food particles.[31]
The web is electrically conductive which causes the silk threads to spring out to trap their quarry, as flying insects tend to gain a static charge which attracts the silk.[32]
Neurotoxins have been detected in the glue balls of some spider webs. Presumably these toxins help immobilize prey, but their function could also be antimicrobial, or protection from ants or other animals that steal from the webs or might attack the spider.[33]
Spider silk has greater tensile strength than the same weight of steel and much greater elasticity. Its microstructure is under investigation for potential applications in industry, including bullet-proof vests and artificial tendons. Researchers have used genetically modified mammals and bacteria to produce the proteins needed to make this material.[34][35][36]
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Occasionally, a group of spiders may build webs together in the same area.
Massive flooding in Pakistan during the 2010 monsoon drove spiders above the waterline, into trees. The result was trees covered with spider webs.[37]
Photo Attribution: By Department for International Development, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18411446
Spider webs were spun in low Earth orbit in 1973 aboard Skylab, involving two female European garden spiders (cross spiders) called Arabella and Anita, as part of an experiment on the Skylab 3 mission.[43]
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... Webs are also featured in many other cultural depictions of spiders. In films, illustration, and other visual arts, spider webs may be used to readily suggest a "spooky" atmosphere, or imply neglect or the passage of time. Artificial "spider webs" are a common element of Halloween decorations. Spider webs are a common image in tattoo art, often symbolizing long periods of time spent in prison, or used simply to fill gaps between other images.
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The World Wide Web is thus named because of its tangled and interlaced structure, said to resemble that of a spider web.
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The Spider's Silk
Silk is special in many ways. Humans have been sourcing silk from insects' cocoons to make garments out of them. The spider is unique in its ability to weave its web from silk throughout its life. According to Wikipedia page Animal fiber [as on January 18, 2023]:
Spider silk is the strongest natural fiber known. The strongest dragline silk is five times stronger than steel and three times tougher than Kevlar. It is also highly elastic, the silk of the ogre-faced spider can be stretched six times its original length without damage. As of 2005, there is no synthetic material in production that can match spider silk, but it is actively being sought by the U.S. military for such applications as body armor, parachutes and rope.[1] Genetically engineered goats have been raised to produce spider silk in their milk at a cost of around $1,500 per gram.
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Also see: 14 of the Most Elaborate Spider Webs Ever Found in Nature
There is so much that can be found in admiration of spider webs. There is so much on the World Wide Web about spiders, their webs, their silk, their strategy, and so on. However, at the end of the day, how simple it is to remove cobwebs. So, how true the warning in this ayat is:
مَثَلُ الَّذِيۡنَ اتَّخَذُوۡا مِنۡ دُوۡنِ اللّٰهِ اَوۡلِيَآءَ كَمَثَلِ الۡعَنۡكَبُوۡتِ ۖۚ اِتَّخَذَتۡ بَيۡتًا ؕ وَ اِنَّ اَوۡهَنَ الۡبُيُوۡتِ لَبَيۡتُ الۡعَنۡكَبُوۡتِۘ لَوۡ كَانُوۡا يَعۡلَمُوۡنَ ٤١
41 The example of those who take allies other than Allāh is like that of the spider who takes [i.e., constructs] a home. And indeed, the weakest of homes is the home of the spider, if they only knew.
[Al-Quran The Spider ayaat 41, Translation: Saheeh International]
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