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Fun Friday: “Squid” Spider
Caution, Acracnoids … Spider Ahead!!! Today’s blog post features an unidentified species of spider I found on a Tropical Milkweed leaf, while photographing butterflies at the new butterfly garden at the Lake of the Ozarks (MO). My first reaction was it looked like a very small, land-based squid! If you are an entomologist, or know […]
Jumping Spiders
When hiking prairies in the summer, I always try to stay alert for Jumping Spiders (Family Salticidae). Not because of any danger to me, but because they are so cool. They are typically small, the females reaching a length of ~8-15 mm long, and the males a bit smaller, ~6-12mm in length. They have an […]
Prime Orb Spider Habitat, Pt 1
While photographing wildflowers in my rural Missouri wildflower garden, I found several nice orb spider webs … some with it’s resident home. Today’s post, Part 1 of a multiple part post, features a Yellow Garden Spider (Argiope aurantia) that I spotted directly behind a nice clump of purple asters. Here are a few of my […]
Wary Little Jumper
Warning to Arachnophobics: Spider Images! From one of my last trips to the nearby natural prairie, this little Metaphid Jumping Spider (Metaphidippus spp.) who was hiding under the shelter of a May Apple wildflower leaf. As he continued to hide, he would often peer from under the leaf at me: I found this little guy […]
Backlit Beauty
On my last visit to the local Missouri prairie, there was not much wildflower activity. A few blooms here and there, but most plants are going to seed and browning up. However, I found this interesting orb spider web at the edge of the woods. It is a web built by an Arboreal Orb Weaver […]
Posted in Insect Photography, Nature Photography
Tags: behavior, Blog, Cass County, Dorsett Hill Prairie, fall, insect, meadow, Missouri, nature, nature photography, prairie, spider, spider web
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Triangular Orb Weaver
While hiking one of the trails at Burr Oak Woods Nature Center (Blue Springs, Missouri), we came upon several orb weaving spiders. This little guy, a Triangulate Orb Weaver (Verrucosa arenata) was a real find. I’ve only seen these a couple of times previously. With a light wind blowing down the pathway, it was very […]