Welcome to the spiderverse, a world measured through webs

Counting the creatures in the world around us is critical for a raft of conservation efforts. It helps scientists gauge biodiversity, track migration, and spot invasive species. That census-taking, though, often requires humans to tabulate what they see, trap, or otherwise sense—a potentially laborious, costly process that can still leave gaps.But developments over the last decade have revolutionized eco-surveillance. Biologists have tapped into sequencing technology to analyze environment