A1 Vertaisarvioitu alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä lehdessä
Ecosystem services provided by spiders
Tekijät: Cardoso, Pedro; Pekár, Stano; Birkhofer, Klaus; Chuang, Angela; Fukushima, Caroline Sayuri; Hebets, Eileen A.; Henaut, Yann; Hesselberg, Thomas; Malumbres‐Olarte, Jagoba; Michálek, Ondřej; Michalko, Radek; Scott, Catherine; Wolff, Jonas; Mammola, Stefano
Kustantaja: Wiley
Kustannuspaikka: HOBOKEN
Julkaisuvuosi: 2025
Journal: Biological Reviews
Tietokannassa oleva lehden nimi: Biological Reviews
Lehden akronyymi: BIOL REV
Artikkelin numero: brv.70044
Sivujen määrä: 20
ISSN: 1464-7931
eISSN: 1469-185X
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.70044
Verkko-osoite: https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.70044
Rinnakkaistallenteen osoite: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/499062267
Spiders, ubiquitous and abundant predators in terrestrial ecosystems, often are the subjects of an unjust negative perception. However, these remarkable creatures stand as unsung heroes within our ecosystems, contributing a multitude of ecosystem services critical to human well-being. Here, we describe the diverse spectrum of ecosystem services offered by spiders and their potential to inspire or directly provide nature-based solutions. Provisioning services include the versatile uses of silk-like and other materials, inspiration for biomimetic technology, medicines derived from venom, hemolymph and silk, bio-insecticides that offer eco-friendly alternatives to synthetic chemicals, food sources for various human communities worldwide, and unconventional yet increasingly valued pets. Regulating services provided by spiders extend to vital roles in pest suppression across diverse agricultural settings, mitigating diseases by curbing insect-mediated pathogen dispersal, and controlling invasive species. Supporting services offered by spiders are equally extensive, involving nutrient cycling through the breakdown of organic matter, acting as food sources for predators, or creating habitats for other organisms. Beyond their tangible contributions, spiders hold a significant cultural and spiritual heritage globally and are integral to many traditional medicine practices. They inspire contemporary culture, provide educational value, contribute to mental health improvement, evoke a sense of place, offer models for scientific discovery, and are commonly employed for monitoring biodiversity and ecosystem health. To pave the way for future research, we present suggestions for exploring and quantifying the economic value of ecosystem services by spiders. While many of these services are well established and studied from various perspectives, others harbour untapped potential. Leveraging what nature inherently provides, these nature-based solutions offer avenues to address challenges such as biodiversity erosion and societal needs. By restoring, preserving, or mimicking natural processes of spiders, we can enhance or provide essential ecosystem services, harnessing the full potential of spiders and the web of benefits they bring us.
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The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest to disclose. P. C. received funding from the European Union’s research and innovation programmes Horizon 2020 (SustI-nAfrica, grant agreement #861924) and Horizon Europe (BioMonitor4CAP, grant agreement #101081964), cE3c (https://doi.org/10.54499/UIDB/00329/2020), and
CHANGE (https://doi.org/10.54499/la/p/0121/2020). C. S. F. acknowledges personal funding from the Academy
of Finland (grant agreement #348352). O. M. received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and
innovation programme under the European Commission grant agreement No 101031131. C. S. is supported by a Ban-
ting Postdoctoral Fellowship funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. J. W. was funded by the European Union (ERC Starting Grant 101040724 – SuPerSilk). S. M. acknowledges support of
NBFC, funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research, P. N. R. R., Missione 4 Componente 2, ‘Dalla
ricerca all’impresa’, Investimento 1.4, Project CN00000033. Open access publishing facilitated by Helsingin yliopisto, as part of the Wiley - FinELib agreement.
