However, the scale of production was always far smaller than for cultivated silks. the production of Eri silk in Assam, India. Several kinds of wild silk, produced by caterpillars other than the mulberry silkworm, have been known and spun in China, South Asia, and Europe since ancient times, e.g. The word silk comes from Old English: sioloc, from Latin: sericum and Ancient Greek: σηρικός, romanized: sērikós, 'silken', ultimately from the Chinese word 'sī' and other Asian sources-compare Mandarin sī 'silk', Manchurian sirghe, Mongolian sirkek. Other types of arthropods produce silk, most notably various arachnids, such as spiders. Silk production also occurs in hymenoptera ( bees, wasps, and ants), silverfish, caddisflies, mayflies, thrips, leafhoppers, beetles, lacewings, fleas, flies, and midges. Silk is mainly produced by the larvae of insects undergoing complete metamorphosis, but some insects, such as webspinners and raspy crickets, produce silk throughout their lives. There has been some research into other types of silk, which differ at the molecular level. Silk is produced by several insects but, generally, only the silk of moth caterpillars has been used for textile manufacturing.

The shimmering appearance of silk is due to the triangular prism-like structure of the silk fibre, which allows silk cloth to refract incoming light at different angles, thus producing different colors.

The best-known silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity ( sericulture).

The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles.

Silk & Steel by Ariana Nash