Eight legged neighbours

 Wolf Spider Mother on Moss

Visiting Birdfair a couple of weeks ago I was delighted to see quite a few non birdy stalls and conservations groups such as the the Butterfly Conservation Stand and The British Arachnological Society whith some stunning Fen Raft Spiders on display. It encouraged me to get out into my own garden and see what beasties I could uncover.

Baby wolf spiders on there mothers back

Gardens can be a forgotten nature reserve but added up make the largest sanctuary for wildlife in the UK. Armed with Nikon 60mm Macro I went on a bug hunt (sorry arachnid hunt). I found a mother wolf spider with hatchlings on her back. They stay with her for protection until they hop of into the big wide world. 

 Daddy long leg spider

Depending where abouts in the country you are a Daddy long legs may be a cranefly or harvestmen but this is the spider version Pholcus phalangioides. Because of humans its colonised most of the world though can't tolerate cold weather so is mostly found indoors in toilets or houses but has the habit of eating other spiders sometimes quite venomous ones so is welcomed in some parts of the world.

House Spider 

The big girl of the bunch is this house spider who quite happily lives next to my kitchen. She does a great job of mopping up any flies that try to get into the house and moths attracted by the lights. Spiders are very clean and tend to stick to one area rather then flies which could be full of bacteria after feeding on something rotten elsewhere so spiders are great at keeping them at bay.

Fancy a cuddle?

It just goes to show you don't have to travel far to find unusual and interesting subjects to photograph.

BBC Wildlife Local Patch Reporter
Jack Perks

@JackPerksPhoto
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