How It Works

SPIDERS HAVE BLUE BLOOD

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They might not be royals, but spiders have blue blood filling their bodies. Unlike mammals, which have rich red haemoglobi­n in their blood to transport oxygen around the body, spiders use a similar molecule called hemocyanin. Whereas haemoglobi­n uses iron atoms to bind with oxygen, hemocyanin uses copper to transport oxygen around the spider’s body. Hemocyanin also absorbs all wavelength­s of light except for those at the shortest end of the spectrum, reflecting it to appear blue. Spiders share this trait with snails and octopuses.

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