Nature Features

Laura in the Dudley tunnel

Laura Vickers, age 22, is spending two years exploring Dudley's vast canal system, as she hunts for the elusive Cave Spider.

Also called 'Meta Menardi', the arachnid the second largest spider in Britain and adults can achieve a leg-span of 5cm. Though widespread, they are rarely seen due to their photophobic nature, preferring to live in dark caves and tunnels.

Laura, who's in the second year of a PhD studying aphids and climate change at the University of Birmingham, first had the idea after spending time in the tunnels and witnessing the wildlife on offer first hand.

"I used to do voluntary work leading tours with the Dudley Canal Trust," she said. "I've always been fascinated by the amount of wildlife in and around the caverns and tunnels. In some parts, you'd see dozens and dozens of spiders all on their webs.

"These tunnels are ecological gems, and we don't know how species react to these environments because they have never been studied before."

Laura (second from left) in Brazil

Laura has long had a keen interest in animal habitats, having spent time on a research project in Brazil investigating alligators. Ironically though, she's not too keen on spiders:

"I can look and appreciate them as a weird, eight legged organism but I'd rather one not crawl up my arm. I'm likely to let out a little scream if one crawls past me while I'm watching a DVD at home (laughs)."

Over the next two years, Laura will set up cameras and probes to measure temperature, humidity, CO2 and light levels in the Dudley Canal Tunnel.

As well finding out whether the Cave Spider has made the area its home (the nearest known population is in Lichfield, 10 miles away across the M6 motorway), Laura hopes her study will shed light on a unique urban and former industrial environment.

Laura Vickers

"The Black Country is a fascinating place," she said. "We have so much here in terms of an unusual local environment like the Dudley caverns and a lot of people don't know about it. We don't know what we've got down there in terms of wildlife – it's a massive area and is going to be great to explore.

"I think people from more rural locations are more in touch with nature. We've got such a heavily industrialised history but the Black Country is also this area is biologically very rich. I hope this project will raise awareness that we've got all these wonderful, relatively unexplored places on our doorstep."