The Wonder of Spiders

Level: C1

How much of each year do spiders spend killing insects? Why, you may wonder, should spiders be our friends? Because they destroy so many insects, and insects include some of the greatest enemies of the human race. Insects would make it impossible for us to live in the world; they would devour all our crops and kill our flocks and herds, if it were not for the protection we get from insect-eating animals. We owe a lot to the birds and beasts who eat insects but all of them put together kill only a fraction of the number destroyed by spiders. Moreover, unlike some of the other insect eaters, spiders never do the harm to us or our belongings. Spiders are not insects, as many people think, nor even nearly related to them. One can tell the difference almost at a glance, for a spider always has eight legs and insect never more than six.

How many spiders are engaged in this work on our behalf? One authority on spiders made a census of the spiders in grass field in the south of England, and he estimated that there were more than 2,250,000 in one acre; that is something like 6,000,000 spiders of different kinds on a football pitch. Spiders are busy for at least half the year in killing insects. It is impossible to make more than the wildest guess at how many they kill, but they are hungry creatures, not content with only three meals a day. It has been estimated that the weight of all the insects destroyed by spiders in Britain in one year would be greater than the total weight of all the human beings in the country.

From Spare that Spider in The listener by T. H. Gillesple 

Glossary

all put together- bigger than several things if they are added together

at least- not less than a particular number or amount

authority- someone who knows a lot about a subject and whose knowledge and opinions are greatly respected

beast- an animal, especially a large or dangerous one

census- an official process of counting something for government planning

content- happy or satisfied

destroy- to damage something so badly that is no longer exists or cannot be used or repaired

devour- to east something quickly because you are very hungry

engage- to be doing or become involved in an activity

estimate- to try to judge the value, size, speed, cost, etc. of something, without calculating it exactly

flock- a group of sheep, goats, or birds

fraction- a very small amount of something

glance- a quick look

herd- a group of animals of one kind that live and feed together

nearly- almost, but not quite or not completely

Collocations

spend time doing something

make it impossible for someone to do something

get protection from something or someone

owe something to someone or something

a fraction of something

do harm to someone or something

tell the difference

at a glance

be engaged in something

on someone’s behalf

an authority on a subject

make a census of something

make a guess at something

a wild guess

content with

it is estimated that