After a spider finishes weaving its web, it sometimes adds one last touch. A bright zigzag down the middle, like a silken “X.

The purpose of stabilimenta within the web is unclear. They could help collect water, regulate a spider’s body temperature, ...

A study shows that spider web decorations help spiders locate prey by spreading vibrations across more silk threads.

Researchers simulated the effects that different web decorations had on vibrations, adding fresh insight to a decades-old ...

Every year Halloween enthusiasts adorn their homes with synthetic cobwebs. Spiders bedeck their webs with “stabilimenta”—various woven patterns that are typically made of a different kind of silk than ...

The long-standing mystery around why spider webs sometimes feature "extra touches" known as stabilimenta has been revisited ...

Ever walked past a spider’s web and noticed it’s got zigzags woven through it? Congratulations! You have observed stabilimenta, a kind of “extra touch” that spiders weave into their webs that's made ...

Scientists offer a new idea for why orb-weaving arachnids add decorations known as stabilimenta to their webs.

Entomologist Sarah Han has always been into spiders. "I grew up in California and there are a lot of black widows," says Han. "I would keep them as pets. One day, one of them escaped. That's a mistake ...

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