Happymeal - Xysticus cristatus
During one of the recent ddays I took my camera and went to the grden hoping to get some nice insects. There was plently of bees and flies, even some butterflies were still around.
I know there are crab spiders on hunting on the flowers around. Nicce green or white ones that camouflage so well I can hardly spot them. And maybe they were around, but I didn't see any.
I found this one though enjoying his meal among the grasses. The hairy flower he is sitting on belongs to White dead-nettle which is a very common weed herb around.
Xysticus cristatus
It turns out it is a pretty common spider all over Europe. Crab spiders do not build webs to hunt, instead they will sit and wait patiently for a careless insect to get close enough for them to catch them.
They are not very big - maybe 1 cm and their prey is also rather small. This one had some fly I think, but they will also hunt ants. I have also seen a different type of crab spider catching a much bigger bee or a wasp.
When he was done with his food he just dropped the leftover and walked away :)
I found another one on a nearby flower...
...but he tried to hide as soon as I got closer and then run away.
Shot with Nikon D5500 + Sigma 105mm lens
All photos and text are my own.
Super!
Well, you are lucky for insects! :-)
They seem to be hiding from me!
Maybe I should go with you? :-)
You should :D
And they hide from me too... I just stalk them until I get the shot :P
I probably need to take a magnifying glass with me to search for mushrooms :-)
Somewhere I read about the importance of some insects for the reproduction of flora. Capturing the precise moment when the spider eats another insect is perfect: that's how the food chain works. Your images are beautiful, almost fantastic, especially the last ones. The hidden spider is very sublime, as if the petals serve as its lair and trap. Thank you for giving us such beautiful images, @ewkaw
Thank you!
Every little creature serves a purpose and is needed :) Even spiders and annoying little flies.
very nice spiders and very beautiful flowers, it's interesting for me to see your post, thank you very much for sharing
Thank you :)
they are very shy indeed
And nice looking :)
very beautiful crab spider. : )
talking about efficient eater; wait, grab, eat, and then left. ahahaha
we have to pay good attention to the flower or leaf when we try to find them, they blend really well as you said.
Thanks!
It happened to me many time that I shot some flower and only saw a spider on it when I was editing the photos :p They are masters in hiding!
The other is like “geez man I’m just waiting for my prey to come to me but you’re on the way so I’m gonna gtfo here”🤣 nice shots!
Hahaha probably :D
There is also chance he though I was gonna make a snack out of him.
Thanks! :)
Nice picture
Thanks!
They're gorgeous! Beautiful photos.
Thank you :)
Nice photos as always - it is great that you can ccapture insects before they scurry away. Beautiful.
Thank you :) They usually run away.. this one was busy eating so I had a chance to take a few shots.
Ok -that is great - hence the nice photos.
These damn spiders. I hate them, but I sure love these macros.
Totally agree! The only spiders I actually do like and allow to live with me are jumping spiders. They are just adorable :)
Great shots! Yeah, crab spoods are very shy but so cool. Awesome to see a ground crab spider on a flower! I usually find native Xysticus under rocks here, camouflaged against the dirt, much darker than yours. Cryptic little things, but they're a sight when you do spot them. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you!
Oh yea they are cool :D The first one I saw lower in the grasses. He run away even lower after he was done eating. I mostly see them on flowers, but could that I just cant spot the anywhere else. They are so good in camouflaging...
Uhhh. Ohydka 😁 🕷
Ojtam ojtam :D
This year for the first time I saw these camouflage spiders on flowers and I was simply amazed - they were yellow and purple in color.
Now I'm relieved that I'm not the only one paying attention to and showing pictures of spiders. 😄 But your photos are top and very beautiful!
Funny how he reminds me of some people I know LOL
Hermosas fotografías, son realmente geniales. Salud y bendiciones para ti y los tuyos. 🤗
Wow!... Excellent captures of this tiny spider eating!.... Really fascinating... What a way to extract the full potential of the Sigma 105mm lens!!!!.... Congratulations!... Thanks for sharing @ewkaw friend!
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Your photography is always beautiful
It is a good luck to be in right time and had an opportunity of such moment. When I was a child I throw the flies into hte spider web to see if they will act on that but somehow they had no interest.
The spider on yellow flower is really bearly to see good catch.
We appreciate your work and your post has been manually curated by zoology team (oscurity,nelinoeva) on behalf of Amazing Nature Community. Keep up the good work!
thanks for sharing
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I always love your spider photos - you really bring them to life with your shots, which sounds funny, as I know they are alive, but when you see their dinky little eyes, they look even more alive!