Photo Adventures with Curiosity and Learning


March 31, 2007: Hoverflies and Spiders

I think this is a hoverfly - a very patient and polite hoverfly

mar 31 6672

He / she raised his/her two hind legs - I guess showing off

mar 31 6699 hoverfly

Here are two of those interesting orange spiders. I continue to think that they are infant Nephila but still not certain

mar 31 6713 2 orange spiders

And then there were three

mar 31 6729 3 orange spiders

Here she is weaving her web. You can see golden silk being extruded from her spinneret

mar 31 6769 weaving

A closer view

mar 31 6783 orange nephila

And she appears to be harvesting dew - time for a morning water break?

mar 31 6792 harvesting droplets

Now she is drawing the droplet toward her - It is composed of harvesting many smaller droplets as seen to the left

mar 31 6793 harvesting droplet

And she draws it closer to herself. Note that there is a thin strand of silk projecting from her spinneret, and her right back leg is holding it (and also she is missing the leg before her right back leg

mar 31 6797 harvesting droplet

She is actually an acrobat in disguise

mar 31 6803 acrobat

Another view of the silk strand from her spinneret - now held by her left back leg

mar 31 6814 orange nephila

A side view. This is the first time I have observed this behavior - holding on to a silk fiber extruded from her spinneret

mar 31 6821 orange nephila

Here she is harvesting more dew drops

mar 31 6835 harvesting drops

From a nearby web - a mature Nephila maculata

mar 31 6893 nephila female

From the side, the golden color of her silk is obvious

mar 31 6905 golden silk

Then in flew dinner. You can see a golden silk thread projecting from her spinneret

mar 31 6910 nephila dinner

And this little guy hung around long enough for me to get my tripod organized

mar 31 6933 butterfly

A closer view

mar 31 6936 butterfly

Preparing to take off

mar 31 6939 butterfly

And flaps up

mar 31 6941 butterfly

and down

mar 31 6944 butterfly

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

C. Frank Starmer

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