Overview
- The findings, published in Subterranean Biology by a team led by István Urák of Sapientia University, document the giant web in the Sulfur Cave on the Greece–Albania border.
- Researchers estimate more than 111,000 spiders inhabit the structure, including roughly 69,000 Tegenaria domestica and over 42,000 Prinerigone vagans.
- The permanently dark, hydrogen sulfide–rich cave supports sulfur‑oxidizing microbial biofilms that feed non‑biting midges, which in turn feed the spiders.
- Genetic and microbiome analyses indicate the cave-dwelling spiders differ from surface relatives, suggesting adaptation to the extreme environment.
- First noted by Czech cavers in 2022 and sampled in 2024, the site now prompts calls for conservation that will require cross‑border coordination.