Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

Yes there is no doubt that the spider has a bad reputation. Yet they belong to a beneficial Class (Arachnida) and Order (Aranae). They help rid us of many dangerous pests, such as mosquitoes, and flies, which spread disease, as well as harmful insects.

Many people watch birds, photograph butterflies, and chase dragonflies. Try observing spiders for a change of pace. They are interesting creatures with more legs than insects (an extra two) and less body parts than insects. Insects have 3 body parts (head, thorax and abdomen). Spiders have two, the cephalothorax, where the head and thorax are joined, and an abdomen. The cephalothorax bears the eyes (numerous), mouthparts and 4 pair of legs. The abdomen contains the spinnerets for making strands of silk and the respiratory, digestive and reproductive organs.

One interesting and very common group of spiders is the Wolf Spiders. They are in the Family Lycosidae, named for the Greek work “lycosa” meaning wolf. Most wolf spiders live on the ground and are usually found hiding during the day. They don’t spin webs except for one genus. They hide in leaf litter where they are well camouflaged or hide in holes (some borrowed and others dug). Wolf spiders are usually patterned in browns, tans and blacks. There are over 200 species of wolf spiders in North America. This family is usually easy to recognize but individual genera may be difficult.

They have 8 dark eyes of unequal size arranged in 3 rows. The first row has four eyes and the middle pair of eyes is the largest. They have very good vision and may actively pursue prey.

See the handsome devil below.

Remember to click on the photos to get up close and personal.

Hogna sp.

One of the most common families of spiders is the Orbweaver (family Araneidae). Almost all of this family spins orbs (more commonly known as spider-webs) to catch prey. Some stay on the web and some hide in a little nearby retreat. Notice that those that do stay on the web usually hang upside down in the center. Unlike the wolf spider, the orbweaver has poor vision and locates its prey by vibration.

Some the genera have exaggerated form combined with beautiful colors. Remember, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Micrathena gracilis

So, suck it up and get out there and start enjoying spiders.

Troy

Texas Fumewort

Texan Fumewort Corydalis micrantha

The continuing quest to photograph Texas Wildflowers

Family - Fumariaceae (Bleeding-heart)
Genus - corydalis (Fumewort)
Species - micrantha
ssp - texensis (Texan Fumewort)

Found in Ft. Worth, Tarrant county, TX

6-18 in tall. Flowers about 1/2 in long and crested. Blooms Feb to May, usually in disturbed soil. However, it may be found on bluffs, hills, in woods and on river banks. The genus found here in Texas is lemon yellow.

The flower does not appear to be attached at the end but rather in the middle. This is because the upper petal has a spur that extends back past the end of the flower.

The subspecies australis (smallflower fumewort) is sometimes know as golden smoke in southeastern US..

The various species of this genus are difficult to identify sometimes and require an eye loupe and seed examination to separate some eastern species. This one was reasonably easy due to geographic location.

A bonus was the teensy weensy spider catching gnats in her incredibly tiny web.

Be sure to click on photographs for larger views

Troy

Unexpected Encounter

While stalking (Paparazzi style) a Tawny Emperor Butterfly (Asterocampa clyton) in the Rio Grande Valley, my subject turned into a lunch break for a small Bronze Jumping Spider. What was remarkable about the event was the way in which the small spider captured the butterfly.

I know,
For the butterfly lovers, ......boo...... hiss...... Down with spiders,
For the spider lovers, ....cool.... Nice catch by a Bronze Jumper
For the detached, impartial naturalist, ......... a good photo op.

Bronze Jumping Spider and Tawny Emperor

Anyway, back to the story.
As I was following the Tawny Emperor, which was flitting from tree to tree, suddenly the Jumper lived up to it's name. It leaped about 12 to 18 inches off of the trunk of its tree and with uncanny accuracy intersected the butterfly’s line of flight. It had left a strand of silk attached to the tree. When it caught the butterfly, it evidently stopped reeling out its line of silk and could then swing back to the tree. This occurred in the blink of an eye. If I had not been concentrating on the butterfly, I would never have seen it happen. There was no ensuing struggle. Either shock, poison, or a combination of both was enough to end the encounter. Since I was an uninvited guest for the meal, I moved on.

By the way, jumping spiders have a saying taken from "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" - "We don't need no stinking web".

I believe the spider is Eris militaris or possibly Eris flava. Let me know if you can tell conclusively.

The moral or conclusion to the story is: Be alert when observing Nature, and thank goodness jumping spiders are as small as they are.

Shudder!!

Troy