Despite their familiarity, spiderwebs are drastically underappreciated, and without them, the world as we know it would be overrun by insects. From classic orb webs and spectacular tent webs to hidden trapdoor webs and water webs that attach to the surface of a flowing river, The Secret World of Spiderwebs reveals the incredibly diverse ways spiders catch their prey.
The book explores how and why spiders build webs and features close to fourteen kinds of webs made by spiders from many different environments around the world. Revealing the artistry of these incredible natural structures, this book brings to life the spider-created natural wonders that are essential to life on earth.
Featuring foil-stamped illustrations that accentuate the intricacy of spider-web designs, The Secret World of Spiderwebs is a remarkable, beautiful, and spine-tingling tribute to spiders.
This intriguing title introduces 20 different spiders from around the world via the webs they weave, describing the spiders, their silk, and the ways they make and use 13 different styles of webs. Arachnid expert Beccaloni's topically organized presentation goes beyond the familiar world of orb-weavers to introduce a variety of web shapes and purposes... Niumim's gouache illustrations show the intricacies of each of the webs and the beauty of their spider creators. The varying background details and colors provide a sense of the worlds they inhabit, be it a cave, a desert, a forest, or your own backyard... For arachnid appreciators of any age.-- "Kirkus Reviews" (10/1/2025 12:00:00 AM)
Namasri Niumim is an illustrator living in Thailand. Born and raised in Bangkok, she graduated with a degree in fine arts and communication design from the School of Architecture and Design at King Mongkut's University of Technology in Thonburi, Thailand. She is the illustrator of 59 Things You Should Know About Your Cat. Follow her on Instagram @namasriniumim.
Jan Beccaloni is senior curator of Arachnida and Myriapoda at London's Natural History Museum and the author of Arachnids. Beccaloni is also the conservation officer for the British Arachnological Society, and she keeps pet arachnids at home.
Target Age: 6-9
Thames and Hudson
Pub Date: September 30, 2025
0.5" H x 11.0" L x 9.98" W
48 Pages
Hardcover