Photo Adventures with Curiosity and Learning

Colleen did it again. She pulled together a small group of the Flickr Macro Maniacs of Singapore for a visit to Sungei Buloh Wetlands Reservers. Here is the story.

Getting there: Larry did all the work while I attempted navigating

Once there - our group arrived and off we went - where? Here are out tracks

Being spiderman, the first stop was to take a photo of this little guy

Then Francis found something

Then there was this sort of tent web. What appears to be a Cyrtophora beccarii web and a captured something. Looking more closely, I can see 3 male-like spiders, one to the top left of the vertical white silk column - home for the Cyrtophora beccarii and possibly an egg sac, one to the right and one near the bottom, manipulating the trapped ant. Now I am wondering whether these are Argyrodes kumadai or Argyrodes fissifrons from the theridiidae family.

A closer look you can see the large male palps

Another view of what I think is the male

and the prey, looks like a red ant, possibly Oecophylla. The male palps are quite evident here

A closer view of the male

and the unfortunate ant, Oecophylla - all wrapped nicely in a thin veil of silk

What I believe to a live variant of the unfortunate ant, Oecophylla

The long column of silk may be her home and possibly contains an egg sac according to Joseph Koh's book of Singapore spiders

A closer view of the male something and the Cyrtophora beccarii silk home

Then it started raining big time. Inside one of those shelters, useful for observation, we observed this little jumping spider. I think this is a Telamonia dimidiata - and a male according to Joseph Koh's little book Actually, he should display 2 stipes which I don't see, so I need some improvment in identification

Here you can see 4 eyes on one side - with a little imagination

He (Telamonia dimidiata) seemed to like my flash - so aligned himself for a facial view - but where are the two stripes? I see two rows of white dots. Maybe a morph?

It stopped raining - and we found a grasshopper

cleaning her front leg

She also like the flash and made a nice frontal pose

Again

Then there was the jumping something (later identified as a robberfly) - that we chased all over a small patch of high grass

From the side to see her eyes

Then a surprise - a captured bee (I think) that was being devoured by our friendly kleptoprarsites, Argyrodes flavescens - here there is one on the left and one on the right. You can see how the Argyrodes attached the prey by a few srands to the hostess's web

A closer view of the thin film of silk wrapping

Another view

Our fearless, yet thoughtful leader

And a Canon Nikon faceoff

Francis and his long lens (and watch)

Stay tuned for our next adventure

C. Frank Starmer

-