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Sunday, August 9, 2009

Itsy-bitsy spiders!





The most colourful spider I photograped in my garden is
the one pictured above. This photo was taken in March.
But now, with the rains, there's a spider underneath many
a leaf, bud and bloom! And also in their (world wide) webs!!

As a child, I did have a mild case of arachnophobia. But
gardening and later, blogging, has changed my perception of
all creatures around me. If butterflies are welcome, so are
the spiders! In fact it's rainin' spiders now!







The artist is a receptacle for the emotions that come from all
over the place: from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of
paper, from a passing shape, from a spider's web
. ~ Picasso







There are many stories associated with spiders. Here's an
online version.

The ancient Greek poet Ovid spun the tale of a young woman
named Arachne, who boasted that she could weave as well as
the goddess Athena. After a weaving contest between mortal
and goddess, Athena began beating Arachne, who tried to
hang herself in fright. Athena turned the arrogant weaver
into a spider, and Arachne and her descendants have since
then been weavers that hang from threads.





Yellow spider on a golden trumpet leaf.





Pale-looking one on a rain lily.




A tiny orange spider on a basil leaf.




Another yellow on the Nolina plant.





A tiny one on the Ornamental Pineapple.


My good old reference book about nature facts says that spiders
prefer liquid nourishment. A spider paralyzes its prey by inject-
ing venom through a pair of fangs (chelicerae) on its head. Then
it regurgitates stomach juices into the wound, introducing
digestive enzymes into its victim's body. All the prey's internal
organs break down into a liquid mush, which the spider sucks up
through its small mouth opening.












It's a spider-eat-spider world!

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

So much detail in your pictures today Kanak. We have an abundance of scorpions here. They look like miniature lobsters! Have a great week.

tina said...

When Mildred mentioned lobsters all I can think of is food! We are raining insects here too. Mostly of the kind that bite like mosquitoes. I do so enjoy spiders-even the biting kind. I steer clear but admire them from afar like you.

easygardener said...

I think that the more you learn about a creature's lifestyle the more you should grow to respect it. I like spiders but of course ours over here aren't the biting kind! I do like your insect pictures.

Wendy said...

Such intricate webs - and tiny detailed pics of spiders. I don't like spiders much, but I do like looking at their webs. They weave the most intricate designs.

Funny that you mention since blogging you are more aware of creatures. So am I. I've learned a great deal about insects and now I am more aware of the little critters.

islandgal246 said...

Very interesting Kanak and I have learnt something new. I never knew how spiders ate. You have soo many different species and a job well done since spider webs are difficult to photograph.

lotusleaf said...

So many different colours in spiders too! Great photos, as usual, Kanak.Thanks for the story from Greek mythology.

Susie said...

I'm not a big fan of spiders Kanak but you captured some great pics. At work we have a big garden spider like in your first pic. We have named her Charlotte.

Stephanie said...

Oh so many insects at your surroundings. The pictures are wonderful. But actually, I do not like some of them... especially the spider ;-)

Unknown said...

Loved reading all your comments...more 'buggy' posts coming up! I hope you all had a wonderful day!

rocksea said...

the first one seems like a signature spider (argiope sp.), called as the st andrew's cross spider in some places. am posting an article on it soon.. :)

the last 2-3 ones are probably lynx spiders - oxyopes sp.

nice photographs!

Unknown said...

Hi Rocksea, wasn't too sure about the ID. I normally check www.thaibugs.com but most names weren't given. Thanks for some of the names. Will surely check out your post!