Nature
PUBLISHED
Rumble user Macropod has uploaded a video of a black widow spider molting that is simultaneously fascinating, compelling and creepy.
The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or subscribe to access the full content.Female black widows harbor a potent venom containing neurotoxins, substances that destroy nerve tissue. Although they have a fierce reputation, a bite is rarely fatal to a healthy adult human. However, the female arachnid is the one to watch out for; the males are totally harmless to humans.
Black widows undergo this molting process about seven times in their lifetime at intermittent periods of growth when their exoskeleton becomes too tight. For your viewing pleasure, this process has been sped up in the video below.
Source: Venomous Black Widow molting by Macropod on Rumble
