Friday 13 August 2010

Little and Large

Morden Bog is a nature reserve just up the road from where I live and we often go for a walk (well, I walk, my OH goes for a run) on the reserve.   I knew the Wasp Spider was at Morden Bog but I have never seen one until yesterday, thanks to one of my contacts on Flickr, I found them.  I found six females and there was three males.   She is big and he is small, the female is impressive but the poor male, he is tiny and puny in comparison, and if he does not get it right, she will eat him either after or during mating. 

The females did vary in size, this female was the biggest, a real beauty I think, I wonder how many male suitors she has eaten:-)
Wasp Spider

Wasp Spider

In this picture, you can just see the tiny male spider, you have to feel sorry for him, nature can be a bit unkind sometimes, but his desire to mate with this huge female outweighs his fear of being eaten by her. 
Wasp Spider

Wasp Spider

8 comments:

Phil said...

Great pictures of a wonderful spider. I've only ever seen it once, in France many years ago, and I guess that now it's well established on this side of the Channel, it will be a long time before it reaches us up here in the North East.

Linda Yarrow said...

Thanks Phil, they are moving north, they have been found as far as Cambridge.

holdingmoments said...

I've yet to see one myself. She is a real beauty. Lovely captures Linda.

Midmarsh John said...

Great photos Linda. My - he is tiny. I had to look at a larger view to pick him out.

Mike Randall Bird Photography said...

Great set of pictures Linda, hope to see some one day.

farmlady said...

I'm not quite sure how I got here but my last stop was Holding Moments. I was looking at his blog favorites and your title caught my eye. I'm so glad I found your blog. The photos are exquisite.
This spider is beautiful. Reminds me of the big, golden, garden spiders of my California childhood. I was always in fear of running into one while playing. I still have a fear of spiders but have learned to respect and admire them.
Your photos are so beautiful. Do you use a special lens?
I shall return for inspiration.

ksdoolittle said...

A beautiful spider!

Tim James said...

Informative and entertaining blog, with great images. The Wasp Spider set is superb.