Gonometa postica and Argema mimosae cocoons are traditionally used as ankle rattles in southern Africa by San and Bantu tribes.

They are filled with materials such as fine gravel, seeds, glass beads, broken sea shells, or pieces of ostrich eggshell.

An Oxford University research team found that the cocoon surfaces are covered with calcium oxalate, hindering their commercial utilisation.

They discovered and patented a method known as demineralizing using a warm solution of EDTA (ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid), softening the cocoons by dissolving the sericin, permitting the silk to be unravelled with no appreciable loss of strength.

Gonometa fibroin is rich in basic amino acids, making it a potentially useful biomaterial in cell and tissue culture.