It's a web full of trouble for Spider-Man. In the new movie Spider-Man 3, the superhero tries to avenge his uncle's murder, and creepy bad guys like the New Goblin and Sandman are out to get him. He even has a showdown with a villain named Venom, who spins webs just like he does. Even if Spider-Man had eight legs like a real spider, it would be tough to juggle all these problems! But is the superhero like actual arachnids in other ways? National Geographic Kids sneaks behind the scenes to find out.

Spidey Smarts
The shape-shifter Sandman can change his fist into a hammer—and uses it to pound on Spidey! The superhero must use his brains to defeat the ubervillain, and in real life, a spider's battle tactics are also quite clever. "The fringed jumping spider will step on another spider's web and mimic a struggling insect," spider expert Cheryl Hayashi says. "The owner of the web feels these vibrations and thinks 'Lunch!' It races out—right into the jaws of the fringed jumping spider."

Dressing Down
In the movie, Spider-Man sheds his old red-and-blue uniform for a new black one that gives him stronger powers. As real spiders grow, they also shed, or molt. But a spider leaves behind an exoskeleton—the hard shell on the outside of its body—not a uniform. Molting spiders may not develop new powers, but they can exhibit new behaviors. For instance, when male jumping spiders molt for the last time, they start trying to attract mates in very strange ways. "They lose their appetite," Hayashi says. "And they seem to have a strong desire to 'dance' for females."

Fight! Fight!
Venom traps Mary Jane to lure Spider-Man into a battle to save her. Most spiders don't fight—but a male bowl-and-doily spider sometimes will when there's a female in the neighborhood. The spiders usually don't fight to the death, though. They battle just long enough to show the female which one is dominant.

Spider Hideout
While battling Sandman in the caverns of New York City's subway system, Spidey hides in the shadows until he can attack. Real spiders are also experts at hiding from predators and prey. The desert coneweb spider hides its web with plant debris and insect carcasses so unsuspecting prey have no idea a spider is lurking.

Spin Masters
Spidey's pal Mary Jane is in trouble: Venom has used his web-spinning power to capture her! But MJ doesn't get tangled in a round orb web; she gets trapped as she falls into a web that looks more like a sheet. Some spiders really do spin webs that look like Venom's. A linyphiid spider spins sheet webs over grass or shrubs and dangles from these horizontal, meshlike traps. "Orb webs are specialized to capture flying insects," Hayashi says. "Sheet webs are designed to capture both flying and nonflying prey, such as a cricket walking by."