<p>Researchers who made this amazing discovery said their findings could lead to novel ways to combat malaria that kills thousands of people every year. In an experiment, the scientists used worn socks to find out if the East African jumping spider, Evarcha culicivora, was attracted to human odours like its prey.<br /><br />It was found that the spider has evolved an affinity for smelly human feet in order to help find its prey -- Anopheles gambiae that, according to past research, is also attracted to the scent of humans.<br /><br />It may be a rather ugly, bloodthirsty little creature, but Evarcha culicivora could help in the ongoing and complex battle against malaria, the researchers said. "It's something that's there in the environment for free," study author Fiona Cross from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, told BBC News.<br /><br />"So why not do what we can to find out about this remarkable predator?" asked Cross who carried out the study along with Robert Jackson from the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) in Kenya.<br /><br />The researchers, who reported their findings in the journal Biology Letters, said they were interested in this species as it is the only known predator that specifically preys on blood-carrying mosquitoes.<br /><br />Cross said: "We had a suspicion that human odour was attractive to the spiders before we even ran the experiment.<br /><br />"We generally find these spiders in the tall grass next to houses or other buildings occupied by people." To test this suspicion, Cross and her team devised an aroma-based experimental set-up called an olfactometer. They put each "test spider" into a small holding chamber into which air was pumped, either from a box containing a clean sock or one containing a worn (and therefore smelly) sock.<br /><br />Each spider was able leave its holding chamber at any time and escape into an exit chamber, which did not have sock-scented air pumped into it. The spiders supplied with the aroma of worn socks always remained in the holding chamber for longer than those exposed to the freshly washed sock.<br /><br />Cross said it was "unprecedented that a spider should find human odour attractive". But, she added, the discovery tied in with some of the spiders' remarkable behaviour.<br /><br />"When they smell blood, they can launch into feeding frenzies where they kill up to 20 mosquitoes in rapid succession, and not necessarily to eat all of them," she explained. "We need to learn more about why they do this -- they really do go quite crazy when they are in the vicinity of blood."<br /><br />People, especially in malaria zones, should welcome these particular creepy crawlies into their houses in order to help combat the disease. The researchers are now trying to find out what exactly people might be able to do to attract the spiders into their homes, without also attracting the mosquitoes. <br /></p>
<p>Researchers who made this amazing discovery said their findings could lead to novel ways to combat malaria that kills thousands of people every year. In an experiment, the scientists used worn socks to find out if the East African jumping spider, Evarcha culicivora, was attracted to human odours like its prey.<br /><br />It was found that the spider has evolved an affinity for smelly human feet in order to help find its prey -- Anopheles gambiae that, according to past research, is also attracted to the scent of humans.<br /><br />It may be a rather ugly, bloodthirsty little creature, but Evarcha culicivora could help in the ongoing and complex battle against malaria, the researchers said. "It's something that's there in the environment for free," study author Fiona Cross from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, told BBC News.<br /><br />"So why not do what we can to find out about this remarkable predator?" asked Cross who carried out the study along with Robert Jackson from the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) in Kenya.<br /><br />The researchers, who reported their findings in the journal Biology Letters, said they were interested in this species as it is the only known predator that specifically preys on blood-carrying mosquitoes.<br /><br />Cross said: "We had a suspicion that human odour was attractive to the spiders before we even ran the experiment.<br /><br />"We generally find these spiders in the tall grass next to houses or other buildings occupied by people." To test this suspicion, Cross and her team devised an aroma-based experimental set-up called an olfactometer. They put each "test spider" into a small holding chamber into which air was pumped, either from a box containing a clean sock or one containing a worn (and therefore smelly) sock.<br /><br />Each spider was able leave its holding chamber at any time and escape into an exit chamber, which did not have sock-scented air pumped into it. The spiders supplied with the aroma of worn socks always remained in the holding chamber for longer than those exposed to the freshly washed sock.<br /><br />Cross said it was "unprecedented that a spider should find human odour attractive". But, she added, the discovery tied in with some of the spiders' remarkable behaviour.<br /><br />"When they smell blood, they can launch into feeding frenzies where they kill up to 20 mosquitoes in rapid succession, and not necessarily to eat all of them," she explained. "We need to learn more about why they do this -- they really do go quite crazy when they are in the vicinity of blood."<br /><br />People, especially in malaria zones, should welcome these particular creepy crawlies into their houses in order to help combat the disease. The researchers are now trying to find out what exactly people might be able to do to attract the spiders into their homes, without also attracting the mosquitoes. <br /></p>