Video clip of Archembia male in
web
A Web Page by Roy J. Beckemeyer
Last Updated 20 November 2004
Right: Archembia sp. male. Photo taken through microscope eyepiece using Nikon 990 digital camera. Photo by Roy Beckemeyer. Below right: Close-up of head and prothorax.
The webspinners (Embiidina) live in galleries of silk webs that
they spin with silk glands located in their forelegs. The females are
wingless, but some males are winged. Their wings are flexible, allowing
them to bend when the insects back up in the webs, rather than the wings getting
caught and tearing. I am beginning a study of the wing structure that
makes this possible. Here are some pictures of a male Archembia sp. (a
Brazilian species). Thanks to Ed Ross for providing the insects
photographed here. CLICK HERE TO SEE A
VERSION OF THIS PAGE WITH A 2MB mpg FILE EMBEDDED IN IT. THIS FILE MAY
TAKE A LONG TIME TO DOWNLOAD. THE VIDEO WILL APPEAR IN A 320 PIXEL WINDOW
BELOW THIS TEXT. See the references in my bibliography
for more information on these fascinating insects.