Tag Archives: spiders

Halloween ID challenge answer – Argiope trifasciata

Posted on November 2, 2010 by Ted C. MacRae

Here is another photo of the spider in the previous post with a closer view of its spiny pedipalps (mouth feeler thingys).  Troy Bartlett and BitB’s own James Trager got it right – the spider is, indeed, Argiope trifasciata, the banded … Continue reading →

Posted in Arachnida, Araneae | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Halloween ID challenge

Posted on October 31, 2010 by Ted C. MacRae

Class and order are gimmes – can you name the family, genus, and species? Common name? Something significant about its biology or behavior? Photographed 25.ix.2010 in shortgrass prairie habitat atop the Pine Ridge in Sioux Co., Nebraska. Photo Details: Canon … Continue reading →

Posted in Arachnida, Araneae | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Jeepers Creepers, where’d ya get those multilayered retinae?

Posted on October 5, 2010 by Ted C. MacRae

A few weeks ago I was fortunate to get a chance to blast down to the White River Hills in extreme southwestern Missouri.  Cicindela obsoleta vulturina (prairie tiger beetle) was my quarry – I had made arrangements to meet up … Continue reading →

Posted in Arachnida, Araneae | Tagged , , , , , , , | 28 Comments

My first jumping spider

Posted on April 28, 2010 by Ted C. MacRae

As a long-time professional and avocational entomologist, I find beauty and fascination in all manner of joint-legged creatures. Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and most people don’t exactly share my passion for these animals. Sure, … Continue reading →

Posted in Arachnida, Araneae | Tagged , , , , , , , | 32 Comments

The Inexorable March of Spring!

Posted on March 19, 2010 by jtrager

Granted, the progress of spring seems to advance in halting baby steps with occasional falls onto its muddy bottom, rather than as a determined forward march, but spring is welcome, no matter how it arrives. When little green tips start poking up and there’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Arachnida, Araneae, Formicidae, Hymenoptera, Reptilia, Vertebrata | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Tuesday Tarantula

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Ted C. MacRae

One of my destinations on my annual fall tiger beetle collecting trip last October was The Glass Mountains in northwestern Oklahoma. Rising from the red Permian beds of the central Great Plains, the Glass Mountains are a series of mesas … Continue reading →

Posted in Arachnida, Araneae | Tagged , , , , , , , | 32 Comments

Circus of the Spineless #47

Posted on February 1, 2010 by Ted C. MacRae

When I started participating in blog carnivals last year, Circus of the Spineless was – for me – the pinnacle of blog carnivals.  I wanted to take my shot at hosting this venerable celebration of creepy crawlies, and even though the … Continue reading →

Posted in Amphipoda, Arachnida, Araneae, Calliphoridae, Collembola, Crustacea, Danaidae, Decopoda, Formicidae, Hesperiidae, Lepidoptera, Libellulidae, Odonata, Opiliones, Passalidae, Vespidae | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

Creepy Crawly Spiders

Posted on December 13, 2009 by Ted C. MacRae

Today’s post is another in a series of occasional guest essays by 10-year old Madison MacRae.  Madison is certainly the budding naturalist in our family, having accompanied me on recent collecting trips to the sand prairies of southeast Missouri and … Continue reading →

Posted in Arachnida, Araneae | Tagged , , , , , , , | 18 Comments