I always keep an eye out for spiders. There don't seem to be as many around these days so I was happy to find two on the beach the other day. Thin-legged wolf spiders, Pardosa sp., probably P. lowriei. Most spiders stay away from the edge of the salt water; not these. Here they were, taking advantage of the low tide to hunt among the faded seaweeds left at the high tide line.
I rarely get a good look at them, though; they are usually running. And they're fast! I suprised this one sitting on a stone, and took a first photo from a good distance. When I took one step his way, he was gone in a flash.
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| Fuzzy photo, cropped and zoomed. Nice thin legs. With sea lettuce. |
The second one I saw was already running.
These are hunting spiders; they don't make webs so they depend on speed for catching their prey. Small flies are usually hovering over the mounds of drying seaweeds at the upper tide line; these may be what brings the spiders down to the beach.
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Dondequiera, siempre ando buscando arañas. Y en estos dias, no las encuentro tanto como antes. Así que me hizo feliz encontrar dos en la playa. Arañas licósidas, "arañas lobo de patas delgadas", del género Pardosa, probablemente P. lowriei. La mayoría de las arañas se alejan de la playa, pero estas no. Aquí estaban, aprovechando la marea baja para buscar su presa entre las algas marinas dejadas a secarse.
Raras veces las llego a ver claramente; siempre están corriendo. Y corren a gran velocidad. Esta, la encontré descansando sobre una piedra, y saqué una primera foto desde esa distancia. Di un paso más, y desapareció al instante.
Foto: la araña. Una foto un poco borrosa. Ni modo. Mira las patas delgadas. Lo verde es el alga marina Ulva sp.
La segunda araña ya estaba corriendo cuando la vi.
Estas son arañas cazadoras; no hacen telarañas y cuentan con su velocidad y agilidad para la caza. Alrededor de las pilas de algas marinas al nivel de las mareas altas, se encuentran siempre una nube de moscas pequeñas; serán éstas que forman parte de la dieta de estas arañas.
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