Why the thinnest sticky hairs rule

Many creatures can walk on walls and ceilings thanks to slender hairs on their feet. Intermolecular attractions between a surface and the tips of those plentiful hairs, or setules, on geckos, spiders, and other creatures add up to a strong adhesive force (SN: 6/7/03, p. 356: Caught on Tape: Gecko-inspired adhesive is superstrong).

TOEHOLDS. This spider is shown positioned above a micrograph of the fine hairs, viewed from below, on the bottoms of its feet.