Why so many of us are casual spider-murderers
By Zaria Gorvett, 4th October 2021, BBC Future
It's officially arachnicide season in the Northern Hemisphere. Millions of spiders have appeared in our homes – and they'd better be on their guard. Why do we kill them so casually?
"I think people assume that some forms of life are worth more than others... but they don't think about it. They don't ask themselves those questions," says Geraldine Wright, professor of entomology at the University of Oxford. She points out that our disregard for spiders is partly a Western peculiarity since some cultures and religions – such as Buddhism – have held the view that all living things are precious for millennia.