Friday, February 3, 2012

The Jumping Spider [Evarcha Culicivora]




The Jumping Spider is an amazing little creature.
Capable of jumping 40 times their own body length [which = 220ft for a 5ft 6 person] to catch their prey. The ultimate delicacy craved being mosquitoes engorged with blood which they can spot at quite some distance with their extraordinary eyesight.
Always welcome in my garden & gives thought to those nations effected by malaria where endless lives are lost annually.........
These brilliantly dressed little characters come in many colors & are native in many nations.

white socks
This little beauty munches on pesky scale in the garden- including Black flyspeck scale. Unlike ants that actually harvest the scale - this fellow is lured to it -  like a gourmet to the caviar. Traveling always alone he helicopters around about his hosts with an air of authority -  landing delicately on his hosts -  rubbing his little white paws together in satisfaction after devouring his delight. 




Smile is worth more than 1000 words... 
a home to suit every body...

sun-baking by the pool....