Spiders use 'scarecrows' to scare off predators

Is that a spider? Nope - it's a scarecrow... of sorts!

For some people, spiders can be quite scary; for others, scarecrows are much spookier.

Well, scientists have discovered a freaky fact about some orb-weaver spiders, who are the ones that spin circular webs.

In the tropical forests of Peru and the Philippines, they found examples of the spiders making large decoys of themselves out of silk, to frighten away other creatures.

In other words, a silky spider scarecrow!

The spiders belonged to two Cyclosa species, one living in Peru and the other in the Philippines.

These orb-weaver spiders are known to create stabilimenta, which are bits of silk that they place around the web.

Whilst it's been thought before that these spiders might have used this to create fake versions of themselves, it's not been officially confirmed by scientific research - until now.

Using silk, as well as waste that the spiders find lying around, the creatures build a structure that looks like a much larger spider than themselves.

The study was published in the Ecology and Evolution journal, and its lead author Dr George Olah says that the spiders are taking part in "a theatre of deception".

As well as scaring off predators, the spider scarecrow also distracts other animals, meaning that the spiders can surprise their attackers without them realising.

In a video accompanying the research, Peruvian naturalist guide Juan Carlos Yatto says that the findings are "incredible".

"The Cyclosa is small but not insignificant... each species within this area of the reserve plays an important role which we must care and protect."