You’re in a deep, deep sleep and then you are suddenly awoken by your worst nightmare that you have ever had. There are black dots everywhere. And when I say everywhere, I don’t mean just in your house. I mean EVERYWHERE! They are in your car, your yard, your house, hanging from telephone poles, just everywhere. You go outside only to see little black dots floating around. Your mind is racing as you try to figure out a logical explanation. Hmm, that’s a little weird. What could they be?
That’s a little odd. What the heck is that?
Zooming in, is that what I think it is?
AHHH! SPIDERS!
In the town of Santo Antonio da Platina in Brazil, spiders decided to take over the town.
While it looks like the spiders are falling from the sky, they are actually hanging in a giant web to catch prey, said Adalberto dos Santos, a biology professor specialising in arachnology at the Federal University of Minas Gerais.
You have to check out this video. It is unreal and makes my skin crawl.
During the day, the spiders nest in a giant ball in the vegetation, emerging in the early evening to construct the giant web ceiling which hangs between trees and bushes, said Dos Santos. Each web can measure up to four meters wide and three meters thick.
At dawn, they feast on prey they have caught overnight – usually small insects, but sometimes even small birds – before retreating to the vegetation again.
If strong winds come along, the web may detach from its anchors, carrying the spiders and their ruined home to new sites where they appear to “rain down.” Catching rides on the wind–en mass–was likely what happened in Santo Antonio da Platina.