Behavioural and Physiological Adaptations to Cold

Abstract

Although spiders populate preferably the warmer climatic zones of the Earth, a number of species have made their way into very cold habitats, such as the polar regions (Leech 1966; K. Thaler 1975) or upper regions of high mountains (Savory 1977; K. Thaler 1980). The air temperature in some of these habitats can fall as low as −57 °C (Leech 1966). The spiders of the lower reaches of the temperate climate zones do not have to face such extremes; nonetheless winter air temperatures of −20 °C and below can occur even there.