Overview
- The web was found in a pitch-black cave on the Greece–Albania border and spans about 1,140 square feet.
- Researchers counted roughly 110,000 spiders, including about 69,000 Tegenaria domestica and 42,000 Prinerigone vagans.
- Scientists describe the colony as the first documented case of these common, normally solitary species collaborating within one web.
- Czech cavers first encountered the structure in 2022, with follow-up sampling in 2024 and findings published October 17 in Subterranean Biology.
- Lead researcher Istvan Urak said the discovery filled him with admiration, respect and gratitude upon first seeing the site.