One of the ambassador spiders at
Spider Web Watch is the
Misumena vatia, or goldenrod crab spider. So far, I've observed ten different individuals of this lovely species, seven of which are living in the front garden. Below a sampling. The first two are spiders I found at the near edge of the far field. The rest, garden dwellers, in a sequence: small, smaller, smallest.
In the late afternoon sun, having a snackTiny, brave, on a buttercupWaiting on a shasta daisyEnjoying a fly on a shasta daisyJust a white speck, snacking on a dark speck, that turned out to be a tiny flySome of the juveniles (i.e., photos 1, 2, 4, and 5) might be
Misumena formosipes. Take a look at
the page at Spider WebWatch (and
this discussion) to see the diffculties involved in distinguishing these from
vatia.
1 comment:
That top picture is fantastic. The lighting is extraordinary, both on the flower and the spider.
Post a Comment