How many silkworm cocoons it would take to spin a thread that can encircle the Earth?
It would take 40,000 silkworm cocoons to provide enough silk to encircle the Earth (at the Equator) with a single silk thread! The Silkmoth larva (more popularly known as the Silkworm), spins fine silk threads for their cocoons. These threads can be used to weave silk cloth, and some countries have farms that breed Silkworms especially for this purpose. The caterpillars are fed a special diet of mulberry leaves, and the thread from one caterpillar can be as long as 2,600 feet (800 m.)!