Reader Jacques Hausser from Switzerland has returned with a new batch of arthropod photos: arachnids this time. His descriptions are indented.
Dolomedes fimbriatus, Pisauridae, the Raft spider – or Jesus spider, because it is frequently seen walking on the water. It lives in marshy areas.
Linyphiidae unidentified (Linyphia ?). Post-coital cannibalism… and apparently a second masochist male (left) waiting for his turn.
Myrmarachne formicaria, Salticidae (jumping spiders). This species mimics (and hunts) ants, using its first legs as pseudo antennae.
Here’s another picture from Wikipedia showing the ant mimicry, which is pretty good: note the narrow antlike constriction between cephalothorx and abdomen:
Thomisus onustus, Thomisidae (crab spiders). A very large female found in Bulgaria, on the shore of the Black Sea. This species stays usually on flowers, and can change its coloration to match the flower. This one probably fell on the sand thanks to my students carelessly trampling the vegetation.
Aculepeira ceropegia, Araneidae. The oak spider. A typical orb-weaver spider with a quite nice abdominal ornamentation.
Lycosa tarentula, Lycosidae (wolf spiders [JAC: This species was originally called the “tarantula”]). The biggest female I have ever seen, carrying her babies on her back. It was also in Southeast Bulgaria, a fantastic region for naturalists.
And we have another spider from reader Otto Nieminen, who asks for identification:
Thank you much for your notblog – always an informative and entertaining read. Might this photo of a tarantula be of good enough quality for the readers’ wildlife segment? It is a small species from the Chilean Andes, but I am unsure of what it is. I think I have narrowed the genus down to a few possibilities: Bumba, Euathlus and Homoeomma. Other pictures of the species Bumba pulcherrimaklaasi (previously Euathlus pulcherrimaklaasi) look very much like this. But spider taxonomy is a horrible mess, so who knows!
All very nice! I LOVE the Myrmarachne formicaria!
Regarding the last spider, twe*t it – @CMBuddle & friends have a spider network & one will know!
Does that ant hunter live in Australia? Most ants have crappy vision and rely primarily on smell, but the bulldog ants of Oz have very good vision. Given how visually good that mimicry is, I’d expect this spider hunts ants that rely on their vision.
There are spiders that hunt/eat the standard, poor vision-types too. They also use their front legs as pretend antennae, though IIRC their primary form of camouflage/mimicry is to carry a dead ant on their backs when they invade the nest. That way they both smell like an ant and can touch the dead ant’s antennae to another ant if there’s physical contact.
This is the way I like my spiders – in good pictures taken by other people. (I’m not scared of them, but in photos they stay nice and still. Stuff I’m scared of I can’t even look at pics.) NZ’s a bit limited when it comes to spiders, and most of the ones I see were imported by English settlers when they recreated their gardens here.
Very crafty of you not revealing your fears. 🙂
Very few people know what it is that scares me! Someone’s bound to take advantage of it one day.
Wikipedia says you have plenty! “1134 described spider species, with an estimated total fauna of 2000 species” …
That’s interesting. I wouldn’t have thought it was so many. Is that a lot though compared to most countries?
After seeing the wolf spider I had to look them up because we have spiders here that some call wolf spiders but I’m not so sure. They are big and a bit hairy but don’t quite look like these. Need to do more research.
Very nice! I always like taking pictures of spiders as well. I particularly like how the Dolomedes tends to sit with its body off the ground, which perhaps is a posture that serves it well for running across water.
Finally, we have a local jumping spider that also mimics ants. I have not encountered one this year, but when I do see them I notice there is something not quite right with that ‘ant’. Maybe I should take a closer look.
I thought that was the nicest photo too!
These are so good. Thanks everyone for sharing all the great wildlife photos, day in and day out!
Mimicry is always a blast!
Nice photography.
Maybe more smart than masochist. She won’t be as hungry the second time around; he’s got a better chance of escaping than suitor number 1.
Nor will she be as receptive to mating if the late husband managed to do the deed. Spiders do kill and store their prey, and some extra nutrients means more resources for her eggs.
As for the tarantula, I would lean toward it being a species of Euathlus, noting the iridescent blue femurs on its legs and pedipalps. They are found in Chile. here is a link.
Nice spiders! Thanks for sharing.
Orb weavers all seem to have elaborate abdomen designs. The designs almost seem to mimic their intricate webs.
Jesus spiders walking on water? It’s a miracle!
The miracle of surface tension!
Great photos! I’m following an orb-weaver every day at work; makes a beautiful classic-looking web about six inches in diameter, with a top guideline (probably not the technical term) stretching about three feet from pole to top of bush.
It was there about a week when it nabbed a fly. Two days later it was back, apparently having disposed of what remained of the fly. I only wish a had a camera good enough to take a picture.