...in amongst the flower bed. From the tulip to the daffodil.
Also, a surprise video at the end of the post.
I waited outside the shop for the wife, and a guy brought me this that he caught in his shop. Many people here know that I am into nature photography, but I do not know if this guy knew about it. Maybe mother nature steered him into my direction. So, I jumped out of the car, and we released the spider on an old tree stump. I so wanted my wife to see it, but unfortunately by the time that she got back, the spider had made its escape.
This is a Rain Spider (Sparassidae palystes) and they build watertight egg sacs covered with silk and leaves. And the egg sac contains hundreds of eggs.
Sadly, this one had two missing legs as you will see in the picture below, but they will grow again.
I could only get its two main eyes at the top, and not the four eyes below the top two eyes as the spider did not give me a facial look.
It seemed to get around quick, even with its missing legs, and so it will be okay.
Note: This post title was taken from the lyrics of Spider spider by a band called Tidal Wave.
Spider information taken from our book: Goggo guide: The Arthropods of Southern Africa. ISBN 976-0-2993-4689-3
I have posted a few posts of the rain spiders and the babies emerging from the egg sacs over the last two years, and I was glad that we could help this one. Rain spiders are great pest hunters, and when cornered their bite feels like a bee sting. But luckily, they are not poisonous. Many people also keep them as pets, but we prefer to leave all wildlife free. Rain spiders can grow very big about saucer size, and they look fierce, but there is no need to kill them as they perform an important role in the ecosystem. Pesticides can be a curse in nature, as if a bird collects a poisoned spider, then obviously the bird will die, and if it is a female bird with babies, then they will also die. Just a small example of mankind's madness.
Such is life.
I hope you have enjoyed the pictures and the story.
Photos by Zac Smith-All Rights Reserved.
Camera: Canon PowershotSX70HS Bridge camera.
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