Editing Spider silk (section)

== Silk types ==
[[File:Argiope picta wrapping prey 3836.jpg|right|thumb|A female ''Argiope picta'' immobilizing prey by wrapping a curtain of aciniform silk around the insect for later consumption]]
[[File:Crab spider safety line.webm|thumb|thumbtime=31|right|[[Crab spider]] jumps with safety line, on [[Verbesina alternifolia|yellow ironweed]]. Repeated at variable slow motion to better see silk line. Spider probably ''[[Misumessus oblongus]]''.]]
Meeting the specification for all these ecological uses requires different types of silk presenting different properties, as either a fibre, a structure of fibres, or a globule. These types include glues and fibres. Some types of fibres are used for structural support, others for protective structures. Some can absorb energy effectively, whereas others transmit vibration efficiently. These silk types are produced in different glands; so the silk from a particular gland can be linked to its use.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Gland
! Silk Use
|-
| Ampullate (major)
| Dragline silk{{snd}}used for the web's outer rim and spokes, also for lifeline and for ballooning
|-
| Ampullate (minor)
|Used for temporary scaffolding during web construction
|-
| Flagelliform
| Capture-spiral silk{{snd}}used for the capturing lines of the web
|-
| Tubuliform
| Egg cocoon silk{{snd}}used for egg sacs
|-
| Aciniform
| Used to wrap and secure prey; used in male sperm webs; used in stabilimenta
|-
| Aggregate
| Sticky globules
|-
| Piriform
| Bonds between separate threads for attachment point.
|}

Many species have different glands to produce silk with different properties for different purposes, including housing, [[spider web|web]] construction, defence, capturing and detaining [[prey]], egg protection, and mobility (fine "gossamer" thread for [[Ballooning (spider)|ballooning]], or for a strand allowing the spider to drop down as silk is extruded).<ref>{{cite journal |doi=10.1002/scin.2007.5591711509 |title=Taken for a spin: Scientists look to spiders for the goods on silk |date=2009 |last1=Cunningham |first1=Aimee |journal=Science News |volume=171 |issue=15 |pages=231–34}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |pmid=16788028 |date=2006 |last1=Blackledge |first1=TA |last2=Hayashi |first2=CY |title=Silken toolkits: Biomechanics of silk fibers spun by the orb web spider Argiope argentata (Fabricius 1775) |volume=209 |issue=Pt 13 |pages=2452–61 |doi=10.1242/jeb.02275 |journal=The Journal of Experimental Biology|doi-access= |s2cid=16044608 }}</ref>[[File:Spider cocoon-Kadavoor-2015-08-22-001.jpg|thumb|Spider cocoon]]
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Silk
!Use
|-
|Major-ampullate (dragline) silk
|The web's outer rim and spokes and the lifeline. Can be as strong per unit weight as steel, but much tougher.
|-
|Capture-spiral (flagelliform) silk
|Capturing lines. Sticky, stretchy, and tough. The capture spiral is sticky due to droplets of aggregate (a spider glue) that are placed on the spiral. The elasticity of flagelliform allows enough time for the aggregate to adhere to the aerial prey flying into the web.
|-
|Tubiliform (a.k.a. cylindriform) silk
|Protective egg sacs. Stiffest silk.
|-
|Aciniform silk
|Wrap and secure prey. Two to three times as tough as the other silks, including dragline.
|-
|Minor-ampullate silk
|Temporary scaffolding during web construction.
|}