Friday, July 24, 2015

Pickle Day on Fridays

We watched the monsoon sky last night hoping for some rain to head our way but no luck.  We can see it falling from the sky on the horizon so somewhere someone is getting wet but not here.  The mixture of wind, dust, and moisture sure makes for some beautiful sky though.


Don took this cool picture of a pretty flower this morning but didn't notice the best part till I downloaded it into the computer.  Check the awesome white spider on the left side of the flower!  Wow!  What a great accidental photo shot!  Way to go, Don.

Of course, I had to do some research on the little guy.  Here's what I found:
Crab spiders belong to the family Thomisidae. They get their name because they move sideways, like crabs. The body is not as hairy as in most spiders. The colour of the spider is adapted to the hunting terrain they use and is mostly extravagant. They live in flowers and plants and are sometimes called Flower Spiders because they are often found inside a flower waiting for an unsuspecting bee to come along. They also live in grasses and low vegetation. The female grows 6-7 mm.  They are slow-moving spiders which do not actively hunt like Wolf Spiders. Instead, they remain stationary and await in ambush for some unsuspecting insects to land in front of them. Their bite is not dangerous to humans. The first two pairs of legs in most Crab Spiders are longer and heavier than the third and fourth pairs, and are armed with spines for holding and grasping prey. The females usually stand guard with their egg sacs. The egg sacs are fastened to the vegetation and are usually flat.


Yes!  A second house has already arrived.


Friday is play day here for the summer Pickleball crew.  Doug Kant posed and says hello to all.  LOL


The other part of the crew (24 players today) was between games.



Looks like the ground is now leveled and clear waiting for the next step of the new courts.



Probably no more tonka toys at work till Monday so I get a weekend breather from blogging....unless, of course, we have a storm or something exciting to report.

Have a nice weekend!