St Andrew's Cross Spider

Larry Workman QIN, on February 25, said:

Very nice capture Palmina.

I like the lighting, color, and focus.

Larry

Craig Ward, on February 25, said:

Where is Kevin's finger ? :)Nice shot Palmina,your back yard friends ? Cheers Craig

Palmina Moore, on February 25, said:

Thanks Larry She is parked just outside the front door and we watch her every morning.

Palmina

Palmina Moore, on February 25, said:

**Craig it's a harmless (I think) Spider so Boy's hand didn't need to be there. I'm saving that for when we move the wood pile and see the Redbacks!! LOL

Palmina

Lecleire Jacques, on February 26, said:

Beautiful picture Palmina. What kind of a spider is that ? I don't think we have spider like that here...

Greetings, Jacques

Emszt Mihály, on February 26, said:

Beautiful picture:)

Greetings Mihaly from Budapest (Hungary)

CrystalVazquez, on February 26, said:

I have never seen this kind of spider before... thanks god!! lololol ;) Nice scary shot!!

Regards, Crystal.

MaryAlice, on February 26, said:

Palmina, this is Gorgeous! Wow! Such detail and the pink background is fantastic! It's just beautiful. Well done, my friend! Two gold stars for sure.

arturo cortina, on February 26, said:

palmina fantastic fhoto, very nice. greetings fron arthur.spain-valencia

Coal Miner's Boy, on February 26, said:

Terrific shot, Palmina. The detail in the spider AND the web is awesome.

Paul

Billy B@rk, on February 26, said:

Beautiful but scary! Very well captured.

yo-rafael, on February 26, said:

Precioso bichito. Muy buena foto.

Saludos, Rafael

H George, on February 26, said:

What a handsome looking spider. And interesting little zig zag pattern too! Great work.

giulio colla, on February 26, said:

Palmina

Interesting photo, draft of one Argiope bruennichi

Ciao, Giulio

Palmina Moore, on February 26, said:

Thanks to everyone that has viewed and commented on this photo. I am glad you all like it.

It is the St.Andrew's Cross Spider. I have included a few lines about her from the web. (Oh dear me.....no pun intended!!! LOL)

The role of the cross-like web decoration, called the stabilimentum, has long been a puzzle. At first thought to strengthen or "stabilise" the web, more recent ideas associate it with capturing prey or avoiding predators. The ribbon-like silk reflects ultra-violet light strongly. Such light is attractive to flying insects, which use it to locate food sources like flowers and to navigate through openings in the vegetation. If the stabilimentum silk attracts insects it may increase the web's prey catching efficiency. The silk decoration could also make the web and its owner more obvious to day-active predators like birds and wasps. However, the variability of the shape of the cross decoration (a complete cross; a partial cross with from 1 to 3 arms; or sometimes absent altogether) could make web recognition confusing for the predator. Another possibility is that the stabilimentum advertises a warning to predators like birds to stay away - after diving through the sticky web, the effort required to clean silk off plumage may deter birds from trying again.

Thanks again guy's

Palmina

highton-ridley, on February 27, said:

Yes, great capture.. and an interesting read.. that's helped towards the recommended daily dose of natural history ;-)

chsanfino, on February 27, said:

Excellent Palmina, You've done your research. Beautiful picture.

Chris

Pom', on February 27, said:

a very elegant spider, Palmina... would you mind to meet its cousin ? greetings.

Juanjo Hidalgo, on February 27, said:

Palmina me asombras con cada foto. Esta es extraordinaria.

Un saludo, Juanjo

Borbély Tamás, on February 28, said:

Great shot Palmina !The spiders weave very interesting net at you!It is done some other way totally on Hungary.Spider Spider web

My best wishes, Tamás

Billy B@rk, on February 28, said:

Are these friends of yours Palmina?

Nawitka, on February 28, said:

Beautiful photo, and the spider is lovely. I'm quite sure we don't have any with such pretty legs! And the web decorations are most interesting. Thank you so much for posting this!

pic.point, on February 29, said:

Amazing creature, Palmina, and a great shot. I also like this pinkish background.

Cheers, Inessa

Luud Riphagen, on February 29, said:

Very nice macro Palmina,in contrast with the wonderfull colours in the background. Greetings Luud

©junebug, on February 29, said:

That's a wonderful close-up of a spider and her web, Palmina! The info you gave us is very interesting. Here is a cousin of him (or her). Cheers, Anne

mossip, on March 1, said:

Beautiful photo Palmina:)I can see the St Andrews cross in the name:)greetings mossip

jose vazquez, on March 1, said:

Buen trabajo Palmina,,,,

Un beso.

Syl de Canada, on March 1, said:

Beautiful shot Palmina I like it! If your spider wants to rent a cottage in Canada I have the perfect one for her hahahaha! Just here Greetings Sylvie

Ian Stehbens, on March 1, said:

Thankyou Palmina, for photographing and posting this. Up close he is very colourful. Have you seen his girlfriend nearby?

Ian PS: Redbacks are next I expect.

Palmina Moore, on March 2, said:

No Billy I wish they were. I'd love to be able to do a solo jump.

Palmina

Palmina Moore, on March 2, said:

Nawitka You are welcome. It is a pretty Spider. I looked for her today and she's not there, she must be hiding. She has plenty of "packages" of food stashed around where she is in a plant. She is very clever and has pulled one or two leaves over to make herself an umbrella for when it rains.

Dear Inessa Thank you. The pinkish background is in fact the out of focus awnings I have on our windows. They are terracotta and cream, but do look pink here.

Thank you Luud for the visit and for the lovely comment. Nice to hear from you

Palmina

Palmina Moore, on March 2, said:

Anne thank you for the link. It's a great shot!

mossip thank you for the visit. Yes the Cross is very clear isn't it? Most days she is lined up perfectly with the white zig zags so they look like extensions of her legs.

Jose gracia. Siempre agradable oír de usted

Palmina

Palmina Moore, on March 2, said:

Hi Ian I thoght from what I'd ready this was the female. I thought the male was smaller and had a cream abdomen not the stripes. Ah well, I'll stand corrected.

Yes, A Red Back would be nice. Such a lovely looking Spider. I'm sure we have plenty in the wood pile, which I don't mind....it's the dunny seat where they'll casue a problem. LOL

Palmina

Palmina Moore, on March 2, said:

Please forgive me for not including everyone in the comments. I got side tracked and missed some of you. Thank you all" Jacques, Mihaly, Crystal, MaryAlice, Paul, Rafael, H.George, Mark, Chris, Pommard(thanks for teh lovely link!) Juanjo and last but certainly not least, Tamas Thank you also for the wonderful link.

Greetings to all of you and thank you for the very kind comments.

Palmina

Ian Stehbens, on March 2, said:

Dear Palmina,

You are right about the gender of your spider, and I am sorry I got the female cross-dressing! The male is only tiny and usually off to the side somewhere nearby. The coloured and patterned one is female in this species. The male is plainer grey.

Hang some old calendars or use dressmaking patterns to decorate the dunny, and the redbacks may relocate from the dunny seat to hide on the walls! LOL

Another country adaption, once septic tanks arrived, was to use the old dunny as a storage shed for the cut firewood, but that means rehanging the door so it opens outwards. Redbacks love dunnies and woodpiles so that would have to be like building them a ***** spider hotel. Next time you are out in the Strezleckis you'll have to look out for such Australian treasures that were in vogue before your time.

Ah the treasures of our culture!

marek zdziechowski(marcopol1), on March 2, said:

Very nice capture ,,,,,marek

Palmina Moore, on March 2, said:

Thanks Ian I've seen a couple of Red Backs in the wood pile but haven't got a shot yet. We have many Huntsman Spiders in there too. I've only ever been in one outside dunny and there was a Red Back, so I used to make sure I didn't drink when we visited again. LOL

Thank you Marek

Palmina

Arrobi, on March 2, said:

Genial captura Palmina

Un saludo Arrobi

Palmina Moore, on March 2, said:

Thank you Arrobi for the visit and the lovely comment.

Palmina

Cristina Sottile, on March 4, said:

A great shot, Palmina, of an interesting spider. In my garden lives some spiders with this cross position, but they have not colours. Thank you for the explanation. Greetings from Buenos Aires!! Cristina

Palmina Moore, on March 10, said:

Cristina Perhaps it is the male that you see sitting in the web? They are just a brown and cream colour I think. I don't know if Mrs. Spider would let the male sit there though. LOL without eating him!

Palmina

Cristina Sottile, on March 20, said:

Yes, may be, when I foun one of them I shall take a picture and send you. Greetings! cristina

Palmina Moore, on March 25, said:

Look forward to seeing it Cristina

Richard Ryer, on June 13, said:

Greetings Palmina, I am losing my mind! Sorry about PAM. Your spider is scary. Glad he is there and not here. I'd be screaming like a little girl!

Cheers,

Rich

Víctor Schz de Lara, on June 15, said:

Great macro Palmina what a strange web, that speeder looks like playing music.

Best regard and a hug to Kim!

Palmina Moore, on June 15, said:

Hi Rich I don't know where the poor Spider has gone now. We had some awful storms with huge winds and she was gone. I'm hoping that she just went to ground and will turn up again.

Hi Victor It is a strange web isn't it? Such a pretty one though. It seemed to be quite effective judging by the number of fly's she had caught.

Palmina

jayzoe, on June 17, said:

Wow. I don't like spiders but this is a fantastic shot. I learned some interesting facts aswell. Thank's. Zoe.

Palmina Moore, on June 18, said:

Thanks Zoe As I say just above, I don't know where she's gone now. I'm hoping she'll come out again in warmer weather - I don't know how long they live so she may already be gone.

Palmina