Photo Adventures with Curiosity and Learning

If you touch the web - off she goes - either up or down - leaving an empty web. I have read that with a 100 Hz tuning fork, you can test the spider's response to high frequency vibration. So a tuning fork in on my to-buy list.

Here she is hiding in the grass - from above

and looking horizontally at her through the undergrowth.

I gently plucked her web and this time she climbed up a strand of silk to her hiding place behind a leaf (poorly focused)

At first I was uncertain as to what she was doing here - eating? or making an egg sac? or wrapping a prey? or what.

Another view

Oops - gone again

and here she returns. You can click to watch her manipulate the sac.

picking up her maybe silk sac and continuing to do whatever female Argiope versicolor does with a sac or whatever

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and doing her sac thing (actually contains a small spider)

May 6, 2006: What has changed over the past 24 hours

The Argiope rebuilt her web overnight and added an upper right part of the cross (or X).

Here is her web with her

Here is her web without her. Noice the silk sac with a brownish object inside.

She disappeard and the sac was left oriented so that its possible to peak inside

And this is not an egg sac - but contains a small spider

Meanwhile - back to Saturday, May 5, 2006: The best surprise what that there were several Argyrodes in her web

another

and another

Leaving her, I found a Nephila complete with kleptoparasites everywhere

From the side - you can see little orange regions - these are the small Argyrodes

Near the center is some debris and a little Argyrodes above

Several in fact

This is quite interesting. I think she is eating a segment of the Nephila web but look below her - where there is an insect suspended from the web. She will work her way around the hole - eating these little tasty treats and then when she is near the insect - will steal it.

A closer view

She works her way around this hole, which I assume she created

And here, I caught her stealing an insect

Note the golden color of the Nephila silk

Here is the best image of the little insect she is stealing

Backing up a bit - here is the mom Nephila. Look at the slack drag line - first time I have seen this. Typically it is tight - not loose

Another surprise - I think this is a male Argyrodes. Look at the bulges in his palpi - used to inject sperm into his female friend

Another view

Then I think I found an infant Nephila Though the web is horizontal, I think this is the real thing

Closer

And of course, Argyrodes everywhere

closer

And this little guy was walking around a nearby leaf

As well as a small assassin bug

closer

Then back to the food court - a tall lime juice and someone was having a birthday party

C. Frank Starmer

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