AUTHOR=Zvaríková Martina , Prokop Pavol , Zvarík Milan , Ježová Zuzana , Medina-Jerez William , Fedor Peter TITLE=What Makes Spiders Frightening and Disgusting to People? JOURNAL=Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution VOLUME=9 YEAR=2021 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/ecology-and-evolution/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.694569 DOI=10.3389/fevo.2021.694569 ISSN=2296-701X ABSTRACT=
The quality of human-animal interactions may crucially influence conservation efforts. Unfortunately, and despite their important roles in the functioning of the ecosystem, some animals are considered notoriously unpopular. Using the forced-choice paradigm, we investigated which cues humans perceive as frightening and disgusting in spiders, one of the most unpleasant animals in the world. The research was carried out with a representative sample of