Macro Monday (Garden Spider)

Garden Spider (Argiope aurantia); 6/16/2013

Garden spiders are typically orb web weavers with the addition of fancy smancy signature web art (zig zags). I have not seen such gorgeous signature web art in years and this one was absolutely fabulous.

This little garden spider built its web in the oddest place – the upper corner of our back porch. I could not see the details of the spider itself with my naked eye due to its tiny size. I set my camera with macro lens on a tripod because the sun was setting and the wind was blowing. I knew I would need stability and my hands are not so stable these days for slower shutter speeds.

Below is a crop to see the spider to see its details :

Speaking of garden spiders, I saw one out back in the field in the morning of June 4th while wandering keeping my eyes on the cats (they are allowed out under supervision).

Front; 6/4/2013

This is what it looked like when I spied it in the tall grass and weeds. By the way, this is what I typically see -- the signature web art is not as fancy as the one I took of last night (first pictures above). It is more simple with only a single zig zag below the center.

{Cropped to see details of spider}

Back; 6/4/2013

I went around to the backside because I felt safer (ha!) to get closer and take more pictures.

A Week in Pictures (#8)

A Face Only a Mother Can Love 11/9/2012

{To see a larger image, go here.}

When Dan was leaving on this morning, I spied a tiny moth on the driveway. I decided to get down on his/her level to take macro pictures. My goodness! That is one ugly face!

Dewdrops on the Head 11/10/2012

{To see a larger image, go here.}.

I went out this morning and spied quite a few caterpillars out and about this morning. This one collected tons of dewdrops on his/her head.

Garden Spider: Orb Web Weaver (part I) 11/11/2012

{To see a larger image, go here.}

I was out front with the cats who were required to stayed on the front porch as I did not want to do much today. I decided to explore just a tad while keeping an eye on the cats and spied this tiny little spider in the grass. I knew it was an Orb Web Weaver (Garden Spider); but, it was missing its trademark signature on the web. I zoomed in on the white object and it is actually a very tiny grasshopper he/she is feeding upon.

Bonus Image: Garden Spider: Orb Web Weaver 11/11/2012

{To see a larger image, go here.}

While taking pictures, I must have scared the spider because it dropped down to the ground and played dead. This is what the spider looks like on its other side – kind of boring, huh?

Orb Web Weaver (part II) 11/12/2012

{To see a larger image, go here.}

I checked on this friend of mine this morning and discovered that he/she added its trademark signature on the web. This is what I expected to see the first time around.

Gracie 11/13/2012

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My little girl was acting very bored and depressed this morning. Individual attention and toys did not help. So, I asked if she wanted to go outdoors and showed the harness to her. Her whole body perked and she sat there patiently while I put the harness on her. She was so happy to be outdoors. She would wiggle her butt, dash and pounce on moving grass. She even went after grasshoppers!

FYI: I got her the harness because she has brain issues. Whenever she panics, she would run forgetting where the door is located. We could potentially lose her. I never had a cat like her before. All my other cats would head straight for the door. Not my Gracie. I tried a normal harness and it just did not work. So, I purchased this type of harness and it works beautifully. I do not worry about her hurting herself should she panic and run away. With a collar, she could potentially choke and/or hang herself on the leash. So, this harness gives me peace of mind that she will not hurt herself should she panic and dash with the leash.

Caterpillar 11/14/2012

When I first spied one of these caterpillars, the first word in my mind that popped up was “devil”. So, now it is the Devil Caterpillar to me whenever I see one. Ha! You should see what it does when it feels threatened. I was so surprised when I first witnessed what it did. And yes, I took pictures and will show those in a later post. Anyway, I do know this critter will most likely turn into a swallowtail butterfly.

Chrysalis (I hope) 11/15/2012

{To see a larger image, go here.}

I am keeping an eye on the caterpillars around the house and the detached garage in hopes of catching one turn into a chrysalis. What are the odds that one of them would turn up underneath the windowsill on our front porch? This is day one as it was a regular caterpillar the night before.

I am hoping to see it turn into an Estigmene Albida Moth. There are plenty of these types of caterpillars around here and in my research; these caterpillars turns into moths. The darker caterpillars are very similar to the ones that into the moth I mentioned. I will constantly check on this chrysalis in hopes of witnessing the change.

PS I took a picture 1 ½ hours earlier as the sun was rising; so, it is a very poor picture. However, I needed to make sure it was the caterpillar I was keeping any eye on as it had moved from its original spot the night before. You can clearly see the caterpillar in the picture link. I was amazed to see it densely covered about 1 ½ hours later when I went back out to take some good pictures of the chrysalis.

Thanksgiving Holiday in the States is November, 22, 2012. For everyone who celebrates this holiday, may you have a wonderful day!