A spider invasion of a small Greek town shoreline has led to a unique view pertaining to the horror genre.
However, what you’re about to see is as real as it gets.
Knit over more than 100 feet of shoreline vegetation, the giant spiderweb coating appeared suddenly over the course of a few days and has intrigued locals ever since.
People rushing to the scene in search of answers have identified the spider species responsible for this fantasy web blend.
It’s called Tetragnatha – an eerie looking spider with elongated front legs that can give quite the scare to anyone crossing its path.
It would be close to impossible to miss these spiders’ masterpiece if you strode down the shorelines of this Greek town.
Spanning across hundred-feet of vegetation, the spiderweb has snared everything from rocks to plants and trees.
The extremely large number of specimens is thought to be due to an explosion of mosquitoes brought to life by the unusual heat during this time of the year.
The hungry arachnids took the shore by storm in search of a kingly feast, as well as to knit their perfect layer for mating.
This event is not new for the residence of Aitoliko, since spiders come here in numbers every three to five years when atmospheric conditions are optimal.
Among those who went admiring the nightmarish scenes is Giannis Giannakopoulos, a local resident fascinated by photography who took these incredible shots online so that everyone could admire them.
He told CNN that “it’s natural for this area to have insects,” and that “no one is especially worried.”
Although cheering for the little critters making quick work of mosquitoes, he did admit that the grand veil of spiderweb laid over the shoreline is like nothing he had ever seen before in his life.
The spiders stretching no further than 0.7 inches (2 cm) are harmless to humans and are set to leave or die after their mating season has ended.
The web sheet is believed to house thousands of spiders, all of them belonging to the same Tetragnatha genus.
You can watch the scenes in detail by accessing this link.
Due to booming waves of gnats, the spiders are likely to prosper until temperatures begin to drop.
From that point onwards, the fascinating spider population on the shore should become less abundant.
When these temperatures last long enough, we can see a second, third and fourth generation of the gnats and end up with large amounts of their population,” said Fotis Pergantis, president of Messolonghi National Lagoon Park where the spiders made their whereabouts.
It’s the simple prey-predator phenomenon… or the ecosystem’s natural reactions and once the temperatures begin to drop and the gnat population die out, the spider populations will decrease as well,” he added.
As long as the spectacular phenomenon lasts, the curious eyes of residents and tourists will be delighted with what nature has to offer them.
Well, unless someone decides to have some fun with a flamethrower one night…
What are your thoughts on this?
Would you tolerate living near such an ‘overcrowded’ area?
Do you have problems with spiders? (Don’t reply if you’re Australian)
