Why are so many humans (myself included) afraid of spiders? Arachnophobia consistently lands in the top 10 most-common phobias. Why? Especially when there aren’t *that* many deadly species of them? Why spiders over other animals?
In: Biology
I can’t find the citation, but I had read or heard a theory that the fear of spiders (and other small stinging or biting bugs) could be a generational holdover from early days of humanity (think nomadic times, hunter gatherer). The danger posed from the spider isn’t direct. They won’t necessarily kill you from venom. But they can injure you. And at a time when speed and agility were way more important to us, an injury could mean:
A) you’re easier for a larger predator to kill
B) It’s harder for you to hunt or gather for your food
C) it’s harder to travel with the clan
All of these could be fatal.
And given that spiders, bees, ants, etc are small and can surprise you, yeah, they can be something to be feared.
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