Black Widow: WW2 Veterans

Not all U.S. war veterans are thought of as heroes. A few are considered downright villainous simply because they exist. The venom glistening off their fangs could play a small part in that though. Black widow spiders (Latrodectus spp.) were small yet important players during World War II, lending their biological nastiness to an army needing to be as deadly as possible. While Oppenheimer was scheming and Rosie was riveting the widows were hard at work on munitions. 

To truly be all you can be on the battlefield you need accuracy with your weapon and in the 1940s to be accurate you needed excellent crosshairs. Spider silk is unique in that it is incredibly strong, ultra-fine, and doesn’t break to pieces during the violent vibrations and kickbacks felt on the battlefield.

Some munitions factories kept arachnids on hand but many relied on civilians to farm silk from their black widow livestock. Silk farming entails rigging up a teeny tiny harness to strap down the spiders while you stimulate their nerve centers until they provide the necessary silk. When Nan Songer, a California housewife, decided to sell spider silk to the U.S. Bureau of Standards for $25 per 100 feet she strapped the widows to a block of yucca using hair pins. She would then tickle the spider’s spinnerets with a dissecting needle until they began producing silk from their abdomens. A rectangular steel frame was used to wrap the silk around to dry. A single black widow can produce up to 1,000 feet of silk in their lifespan.

Once the silk was collected it was necessary to be cleaned of dust and impurities using a brush, some acetone, and a very steady hand. That same steady hand then lays the silk strand over a diaphragm with weights on both ends to pull it taut.

The firm, yet flexible length of silk is now ready to be affixed to a weapon or instrument requiring precision. In addition to withstanding shocks and vibrations black widow silk is able to handle radical change in temperature, altitude, and humidity which makes it useful to soldiers on land, sea, and air. 

Although advances in technology over the years we can now rely on lasers and etched glass to aim our instruments properly but that does nothing to invalidate the black widow’s little known war hero status. Next time you come across a black spider with the tell-tale red hourglass it isn’t necessary to offer a salute, but a simple nod of respect wouldn’t be undeserved.