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| Sunday, January 22, 2006 |
| Spiders |
The other night - a hot hot night after a hot hot day - Ata was called outside to view the spiders Mr Ata had discovered.
A fat, hairy huntsman sprawled on a white pole, perfectly unmoving. It was silvery-grey, and absolutely symmetrical. A small night-spider of type unknown to Ata had created a web strung from the 8-foot high trellis holding up the grape vine to the ground. Another of the same spider had a web between the verandah gutter and the brick planter box (the hated brick planter box... one day I shall remove it), and was suspended at head height. The strong torchlight, shone through the web, made the delicate strands move and pull in the heat of the light. A little flying bug, drawn by the light, blundered against the web. It was caught for only an instant before freeing itself and blundering on. The spider darted, quick as thinking, but the bug was gone quicker. The spider returned to the centre of the web, testing her main strands with a quick tug as she settled again. We waited some time in the hopes of witnessing an actual catch, but there was only one more near miss. Impatient to go back inside, Ata threw a tiny ball of tissue paper into the edge of the web. It caught and held fast, and the spider leapt upon the decoy with alacrity. She turned the ball over and over and then - in a gesture of clear rejection - flicked it out of the web toward the watchers. Ata and Mr Ata and MLS were captivated by their own nature documentary, lacking only narration by David Attenborough.
The spider turned back to her patient wait in the middle of the web. Her audience, unwilling to disturb her further, returned to the movie they had been watching in the damp cool of the evaporative air conditioning. And in the morning, the web was gone. |
posted by Ata @ 9:36 pm  |
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| 5 Comments: |
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*speechless* You didn't destroy the huntsman? No! They are evil! It'll eventually make its way across the outback and into my house!
*shudders* Death to all huntsman.
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It'll eventually make its way across the outback and into my house!
Perhaps ata could tag it.
Then jes could let us know when it turns up at her place.
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It'll eventually make its way across the outback and into my house!
Perhaps ata could tag it.
Then jes could let us know when it turns up at her place.
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Now _that_ would make a great documentary.
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"Travelling Huntsmen"
I like it already.
I had one that lived on my car in Alice Springs, that travelled with me to Adelaide. I suspect that one of it's progeny still lives on my car, although I haven't seen it in a while.
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*speechless* You didn't destroy the huntsman? No! They are evil! It'll eventually make its way across the outback and into my house!
*shudders* Death to all huntsman.