Arachnophobic divers might not be happy to hear that spiders can live underwater too! The bell spider is unique among spiders in that it spends its entire life underwater. It is found in still, fresh waters from northern Europe east to Japan.

Its body is covered in fine hairs that trap air at the surface and help it transport the gas down to a dome-shaped web that it spins between aquatic plants. Once constructed, the diving bell acts as a physical gill that is able to draw dissolved oxygen from the water and refresh its contents even when the water is stagnant. The spiders make forays from the bell to feed on small fish and invertebrates, and lay their eggs in a cocoon inside the bell. Within a few days of hatching, spiderlings leave the bell to construct a tiny bell of their own.

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