Spiders

Spiders. Written by Emily Schlesinger. Focus question. What are some traits of spiders, and what role do spiders play in nature?

《蜘蛛》，作者：埃米莉·施莱辛格。 核心问题：蜘蛛有哪些特征？它们在自然界中扮演着什么角色？

Introduction. Do you jump when a spider crosses your path? Spiders may make some people nervous, yet they are mostly harmless to humans. More than 40 ,000 kinds of spiders live all over the world. They range in size from the head of a pin to a large dinner plate. The smallest may be lighter than a feather, while the heaviest can weigh as much as a softball.

引言。 要是有蜘蛛从你面前爬过，你会不会吓得跳起来呀？ 蜘蛛可能会让有些人感到紧张，但其实它们大多对人类没有害处哦。 全世界生活着四万多种蜘蛛。 它们的大小不一，小的只有针头那么大，大的能有大餐盘那么大。 最小的蜘蛛比一片羽毛还要轻，而最重的蜘蛛能和一个垒球一样重。

Traits Although spiders look like insects, they are different in many ways. Spiders have eight legs. Insects have only six. Spiders have two body parts, including the head. Insects have three body parts, including the head. Most spiders have eight eyes, and most insects have only two. Spiders do not have wings. Most insects do.

特征 虽然蜘蛛看起来很像昆虫，但它们在很多方面都不一样哦。 蜘蛛有八条腿。 昆虫只有六条腿。 蜘蛛的身体包括头部在内共有两个部分。 昆虫的身体包括头部在内共有三个部分。 大多数蜘蛛有八只眼睛，而大多数昆虫只有两只眼睛。 蜘蛛没有翅膀。 大多数昆虫都有翅膀。

Life cycle. A female spider can lay thousands of eggs. After they hatch, the babies often stay near the mother until they can live on their own. Many spiders only live for a couple of years. Some, such as female tarantulas, can live up to 30 years.

生命周期。 雌性蜘蛛一次能产数千枚卵。 卵孵化后，蜘蛛宝宝通常会待在妈妈身边，直到能独立生活为止。 很多蜘蛛只能活几年时间。 有些蜘蛛比如雌性狼蛛，最多能活三十年哦。

Diet. Spiders eat about half a billion tons of insects each year. Without spiders, insects would destroy much of our food crops. Spiders also keep the number of pests, such as mosquitoes, under control. Most spiders use their fangs to bite prey and inject venom, a poisonous liquid. Fangs work like a needle.

食性：蜘蛛每年要吃掉大约五亿吨昆虫。如果没有蜘蛛， 昆虫会毁掉我们大部分的粮食作物。蜘蛛还能控制害虫的数量， 比如蚊子的数量。大多数蜘蛛会用毒牙咬住猎物，注入毒液， 毒液是一种有毒的液体，毒牙的作用就像针头一样。

Web and Silk Some spiders make webs, which come in many beautiful shapes. These spiders use special body parts to make silk for their webs. The webs trap insects for them to eat. Many spiders add a sticky glue to the web. This makes it hard for insects to escape. Once an insect is caught, the spider wraps it tightly in silk.

蛛网和蛛丝 有些蜘蛛会结网，这些蛛网有着各种各样漂亮的形状。 这些蜘蛛用身体的特殊器官分泌蛛丝来织网。 蛛网能困住昆虫，供蜘蛛食用。 很多蜘蛛会在蛛网上涂上一层黏性的胶状物。 这样一来昆虫就很难逃走了。 一旦有昆虫被抓住，蜘蛛就会用蛛丝把它紧紧裹起来。