Spiders can be found in nearly every earthbound habitat, hanging around on their stunning spider web. With over 40,000 discovered species of spiders in the world, it makes them two orders of magnitude more than only 400 species of primates! They had been a part of this planet since a whopping 380 million years ago. To draw a better perspective, humans and chimpanzees date back to a mere 7 million years.

For some of us, these are beautiful, wondrous creatures of God, and for others, they are an avatar of Satan himself, the sight of which would send them flying to the nearest exit!

Spiders Have Super Powers!

They can leap up to fifty times their body length, have superb eyesight to spot prey amid the jungle clutter, and map their world in three dimensions to strategize a plan of attack.

The Stunning Spider Web

These creatures may send an array of feelings down the physiology of many people, but their magnificence is just as awe-inspiring as the very homes they build for themselves. We regularly see the stunning spider web architectures among trees, bushes, and structures that we traditionally call “cob-webs.”

Spiders are known for their most unique ability to spin silk. This silk is basically protein fibre that shoots out of an opening in their lower abdomen, unlike our conventional spider-man.

“Spider biologists spend many days of their lives studying this butt hole region of the spiders. It’s sometimes called the “business end” of the spider in their terminology. As funny as it may sound, it’s still their bread and butter.

Spiders spin copious amounts of silk in their lives at some point, which is essential if they wish to survive and reproduce. They spin silk for laying safety drag-lines, hatching eggs, catching prey, and for protective retreats.

Beauty Of The Silk

Have you ever come upon an early sun shining off the morning-dew riddled all over the expanse of the stunning spider web? Some have poetically exclaimed that the sight is akin to that of a goddess adorned in celestial diamonds!

Studies prove that spider silk is genuinely one of the staunchest expression that shatters the belief – “beauty is only skin deep.”

Some spiders spin up to eight different kinds of silk. The strength of some of those silks can be compared to steel – ounce per ounce, while some are stretchy as a rubber band. They are also compared to the stickiness and the texture of adhesive, like glues.

On comparing the toughness value during a study, spider silk displayed impressive results. It surpassed materials like Nylon fibre, wool, Kevlar, and carbon fibre. This combination of malleability, strength, and toughness is what keeps the spider silk close to a bio engineer’s heart.

Turning To Nature

Turning to nature for finding new solutions has been the core of human evolution, the fundamentals of which are cradled in the vast field of Biomimicry. Professor Thomas Scheibel, a biochemist from Germany, realized the silk’s potential for biomedical applications.

Spider silk is practically sterile. It can make a perfect constituent for artificial tendons, can serve as a guide for regrowing nerves, and can support tissue growth. On the military end, this silk has terrific anti-ballistic capabilities. Incorporating it into body and equipment armour can make them more ductile and lightweight than any armour available today.

Professor Scheibel had an idea about manufacturing spider silk. But raising spiders in large quantities and harvesting their silk naturally, doesn’t work because spiders are cannibals – they would devour each other!

Since the 1980s, Scheibel has been trying to recreate this miraculous spider silk in the laboratory – using genetic engineering and biotechnology. After twenty long years of trial and error, he was suddenly the first man to recreate this coveted spider silk protein.

He did this via a method of seamless cloning and an arduous process of inserting the spider’s DNA into the genome of a certain bacteria. Voila! The bacteria produced the spider silk protein. From the proteins, they created the first-ever artificial fibre made of natural spider silk, and Thomas Scheibel became the “European Inventor Award winner” in 2018.

Here’s To Ponder

Thomas Scheibel claimed that “if you wanted to stop a Boeing 747 while it was landing, without using its engines or brakes, one thumb’s width of spider silk rope would be enough to stop it right in its tracks!”

A profound message for us all from the bizarre world of Biomimicry – “The next time you glance at a stunning spider web, please, halt, and take a closer look. You’ll be seeing one of nature’s most high-performance materials known to man”!

What’s the Difference Between a Human and an Animal?
That answer may seem quite obvious. Humans build cities, use smartphones, binge watch movies, drive cars and fly rockets into outer space while animals sit on the earth, eating, sleeping and procreating.

What then should we see so unique in these seemingly mindless animals to consider coexisting with them?
The answer to the question “can humans and animals coexist peacefully” lies beneath our clouded egocentric veils that deceivingly cover our most significant underlying difference from the animals – “Consciousness”.

Consciousness
This word places us over the top of the chain in our demeanour. We are capable of using our consciousness to transform reality.
We develop vaccines to save millions of lives and fly to the moon and back. We have an impact far greater on this planet than our primates can even imagine.

But expanded consciousness came with a flipside too, making us feel like we exist outside of nature. So we built weapons of mass destruction and single-handedly destroyed the earth’s atmosphere instead of building a society where humans and animals can coexist peacefully.

Though us humans have an impact far more considerable, we can transform material reality through practices and this invisible landscape we call the social world. We are not just intelligent beings who found a better use for the thumb than most animals; we are capable of rationality, creativity, empathy, and love. So, let’s answer the question – can humans and animals coexist?

Here’s How We Can Do Our Bit to Ensure Humans and Animals Coexist Peacefully!

Care for the animals around you
This might be one of the most basic yet effective ways to care for the animals around you. Got extra food lying around? Don’t let it go to waste. If it’s still good, head out and feed any strays you may find.

Your leftovers can be their nourishment. So, the next time you cook a little too much, you know what to do. And besides, their happiness is priceless.

Setting up bird feeders in your garden or balcony is another way to ensure humans and animals coexist peacefully.
With the rise in urbanization comes a decline in flora. And birds depend on these flowers and trees for some respite from the sun. If you have a balcony or garden. In your home, set up a simple bird feeder with some water and it could save their life!

Adopt don’t shop
There are a very high number of animals out there without a home. Although owning an animal that is of an elite breed can stroke the ego and boost your image, the sad truth is that these animals are bred solely for human ownership.

The animals out there that have been abandoned are the ones that really need your help. So when we adopt, we give the homeless animals some refuge, and we decrease the mindless breeding of innocent animals and make sure that humans and animals coexist peacefully.

Use Cruelty-Free Products
Check the labels for products that test on animals. There is no practice crueler than testing on innocent animals. So, make sure you’re aware of what you purchase.

This huge problem can be eradicated simply by switching your product of choice, and this small decision can go a long way. No animal should suffer due to our choices, instead, we should find more ways where humans and animals coexist peacefully.

Spread awareness
Nothing is more important than spreading your message to others who may not pay as much attention. Your empathetic attitude towards animals can inspire someone to feel the same way and take action required to make sure our society is safe for animals too.

You don’t have to carry signboards or shout it from the rooftops. Your mere actions and words in conversation may change minds and shape perspectives so that humans and animals coexist peacefully.

Cultivate compassion
The core of it all is to cultivate compassion! Once this becomes your natural state, you will find ways to ensure every animal you encounter leaves a little happier. Pet them, feed them, show them, love. When humans and animals coexist peacefully, animals thrive form human interaction, and we are uplifted by it too.

Try one or try all, just make sure you exercise your empathy over your ego. Animals may not have much to say, but they have evolved along with us and are as many residents of the earth as we are. They deserve to be here as much as we do. They deserve to live a free, loving and happy life too. So, how are you caring for an animal today?