Recently in Australia, the nightmare of Arachnophobian (Fear of Spiders) people became a reality. It all happened around June 2021, when Australians saw something unique, terrifying, and weird(Again). Spiders started to rain all over the Gippsland region in Victoria, located inside Australia. The people are terrified seeing this scene, which looks like straight from a horror movie. A lot of people are still confused about how all of this happened and what were the reasons behind. So, this article will squash every myth regarding this mysterious phenomenon and reveal the truth about the Spider rain in Australia.
Spider Season: The Untold Story of Spider Rain in Australia
Spider season is a rare phenomenon that sometimes happens in Australia, especially during the spring and summer seasons. During this season, Spiders are a lot more common than usual and are found almost everywhere. Their presence can sometimes result in weird situations, one such occurrence is commonly defined as the Spider rain.
Truth Behind the Spider Rain
Spider rain is a rare event, and as the name suggests, in this season Spiders start to pour from the sky.
There are tons of different Spider-landings here and there during the season. One of the top contenders of Spiders is an orb weaver. Orb weaver is a humble Spider, with over 300 species. Most of these species do make a significant part of the Spider rain.
This sounds like people there will be dead by now, considering that there can be around this many species of Spiders just falling from the sky. Luckily, almost all the Spiders that are involved in this phenomenon are non-hostile, not poisonous, and won’t bite anyone. So you should not be thinking about turning into a Spider-Man, even if a Spider accidentally bites you.
Ballooning of Spiders
The main reason behind the rain of Spiders in the world is ballooning.
Have you wondered about what would you do if your residence was about to be gone? Or you need to opt for a better survival opportunity. The answer is to relocate. You will move to another location for survival, with better opportunities and other facilities.
The same thing happens to the Spider while ballooning. Spiders relocate to a better place to survive, and for that they use ballooning. During events like flooding or any other unfortunate event, the Spider who lives in the lower grounds, moves to a higher place they can find nearby.
Once reached there, they stick the webs onto a surface. Then, they will start tiptoeing, basically lifting their backside using their small feet. Then, the wind will do its job by making them float into the air, taking these Spiders to their unknown destination. These Spiders can travel quite a distance while riding the winds. In some cases, these Spiders are found to travel up to more than 1-and-a-half-mile distances.
During the process of migration, a lot of these Spiders had to lose their life. This is because they are often preyed upon by numerous birds and flying birds. These birds simply found themselves with some amazing food flying in front of them, so they just feast upon them while traveling.
One thing to notice about this natural phenomenon is that it is not just exclusive to Australia. Spiders across the globe follow this method to travel to a better place to survive. Due to not having mass migrations, it is not as noticeable in other regions, compared to the Australian land.
This phenomenon is called ballooning because when these Spiders have to land, their web is turned into small balls, similar to a parachute. It helps them to land smoothly at their destinations. You might have also witnessed this phenomenon, if you ever found a Spider on your belongings, out of nowhere. It was just an innocent Spider, trying to find a good place to reside.
Fun Fact: Spiders can not control where to go, as it all depends on the wind, where it would take the Spiders.
Consequences of Spider Ballooning
While riding in the air, Spider Webs starts to build over the area. When this is done, by hundreds of spiders at the same time, the whole area is covered in the sheets of Spider webs. These sheets of silky, smooth, and sticky covering the whole horizon are known as gossamer. This sight unseen is mesmerizing and terrifying simultaneously, considering the number of Spiders all of this is holding inside it.
These webs of angel hairs(formally known as Spider webs) cover miles, similar to snow, that cover all the possible horizons when it falls. Good for you, this Nightmare of Arachnophobia mostly ends within 10 days at max, as the webs slowly disintegrate with time.
Nothing to Worry About
Seeing this kind of stuff for the first time is like experiencing a real-life Halloween without costumes. These flying Spiders roam around everywhere in the form of clusters, making the people shiver to their souls. This behavior seems rare, although it is not true as Spiders usually do this stuff as their normal routine. “They find and reach at a higher ground, lift their butts, and start leaving the Spider web, while the winds make them take off that platform”. The only rare thing is the contribution of hundreds and hundreds of Spiders in this intricate natural mechanics.
Conclusion
The Spider Season, with all the Spiders hailing down, counted as the rare to-share event. The phenomenon has been seen in several other countries including the US and Brazil. These innocent ballooning Spiders can bring out real terror for a lot of people. So, if you are afraid of Spiders, hopefully, you won’t have to witness this story of horror in real life.
May this hail not be with you!
