Photography | Cute jumping spider macro photo taken by Thomas Shahan

[] When you hear the word "cute", the first word that pops into your head may not be "spider"

But photographer Thomas Shahan wanted to change that, taking a series of incredibly miniature photos of big-eyed jumping spiders

[] Jumping spiders are unusual because most of them do not use nets to hunt

They have strong hind legs and the best eyesight of spiders, allowing them to hunt aggressively with powerful jumps

However, they can still produce spider silk, often tying themselves with it before jumping, or to build shelters

[] Except in Australia, where almost all creatures can kill or maim you, I don't understand why people hate spiders

[] A world without spiders would be a world with far more mosquitoes and flies, which carry countless diseases

[] When you know some of them look so cute – are they really that scary?

In 1993, a writer spread the word and other false facts to prove how easy it is to spread false information

[] His presentation was very successful

[] So the next time you see a spider, keep in mind that it may be more interested in preying on bugs that are trying to bite you than they are

[] Source: Flickr

They may just want to hug you!