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| Site location |
This day's random search for fallen pine cones brought me past the Lily Ponds (and a rather large
garter snake!) to a meadow at the back of a small, unnamed bay. The dazzling array of dew-bejeweled plants and cruising dragonflies brought out the shutterbug in me, and I must admit that it was hard not to drop my net and spend the day clicking away.
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| A not-subtle reminder of my purpose |
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| Woozy view of the forest canopy |
As it happened, a nearby row of towering eastern white pines (
Pinus strobus) reminded me of my mission. Leaving the sunshine behind, I dove into the twilight of a rich forest of pine, white oak (
Quercus alba) and red maple (
Acer rubrum) trees. And spiders. Tapping 55 cones got me 21 spiders, including a female
Xysticus fraternus (Thomisidae) and 7 juvenile thomisids, numerous juvenile
Phrurotimpus sp. and a variety of microspiders.
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| Cones and mixed litter |
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| Neoantistea radula |
A load of needle litter, which was rich in oak and maple leaves, produced 29 spiders and 6 species. Among them, finally, was a female from the family Hahniidae. I'd been getting juvenile hahniids here and there since May, but until now never an adult. In this case, she was a
Neoantistea radula.
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