Collaboration between RSPB and Chester zoo leads to best mating season on record for the semi-aquatic fen raft spider

Chester zoo worked with the RSPB to raise hundreds of baby spiders, keeping them separate in test tubes so that they did not eat one another.

The spiders were hand-fed with tweezers in the zoo’s bio-secure breeding facility until they were big enough to be released into the wild.

  • Scary le Poo@beehaw.org
    2·
    1 month ago

    The fen raft spider is a harmless arachnid that plays a vital role in aquatic ecosystems, but 15 years ago was on the brink of extinction because of habitat loss.