Arachnophobes, Enter at Your Own Risk: A Spidery Halloween Post
Fortunately, I’m not afraid of spiders; in fact, I find them charming and fascinating. But imagine if I were! My entire visit to Cedynski Park in Poland could have easily transformed into a Halloween nightmare instead of the delightful adventure it turned out to be.
It all began on the first morning after our arrival in Poland. The sun shone brightly as we set out along the river in search of water birds. The walk was pleasant until—without warning—we found ourselves ensnared in strong, sticky strings that stretched across our path. As I brushed against them, they clung to me, each one as thick as a human hair. It took considerable force to break each string, leaving me wondering what could have spun this trap.
We followed the strings until we reached the fence of a horse paddock. On its poles, dozens of spiders of all shapes, colours, and sizes had gathered—some only a few millimetres long, others about 1 or 2 centimetres. They held a grand party, in which they were dancing, arguing, and squabbling.
As the sun was already high in the sky and the light harsh, we took a few photos and decided to move on, planning to return the following morning for more shots.
But nature had its own plans. When we arrived the following morning, all we found were deserted poles, with no signs of spiders or their webs, as though the area had been abandoned overnight, leaving emptiness behind. They must have consumed their webs before continuing their journey, vanishing into the shadows.
We pushed the thoughts of the spiders from our minds and resumed our search for birds, which was, after all, the true purpose of our journey.
But once again, nature had its own surprises for us.
As we arrived at the watchtower early the following morning, flocks of birds were settling in for the day—from cranes to starlings and from herons to lapwings. The air was cool and fresh, but not for long. Suddenly, out of nowhere, thin spider strings filled the air, shimmering in the morning sun. Each string acted as a parachute for a spider, and before long, the entire landscape was covered in cobwebs. When I say "covered," I mean with a thick blanket that spread as far as the eye could see. Tens of millions of spiders found new homes, most of them too small for the naked eye.
The birds celebrated; they could not get enough spiders.
But just like us, they could not get rid of the cobwebs that trailed behind them as they flew off to find places where they could clean themselves of the sticky material.
The following morning brought yet another surprise: the entire area was submerged, with no spiders in sight. We had no choice but to adapt our plans and move on, in search of new adventures.
This mass migration phenomenon is known by different names, such as spider ballooning, spider bloom, or spider invasion. Depending on the species, it is often related to male spiders searching for mates, and it can be observed in various spider species.
All the photographs in this blog are taken by me, and I encourage you to explore more of my site for additional inspiration. May your nature photography journey be joyful and fulfilling.
What a haloween story :)