Phidippus octopunctatus
Jumping Spider

This spider was walking around the base of a sunflower but it
hid in a vertical position when it saw me
watching it and attempting to get a photograph. I don't how I got
this in focus, but it worked. It's ironic
that having never seen one of these before, I came upon another
one the same day in a
different area
on Antelope Island . © Carol Davis, 7-23-2009

Phidippus octopunctatus is
an interesting spider that's found throughout the Great Basin
desert. According to one page I read,
this spider builds a prominent nest in a bush to hold its egg
sac. This second picture now makes me a little curious. I
don't
know if the spider was alive or dead, but it wasn't moving and it was
actually hanging upside-down (just flip this photo). Was
it in the bush doing yoga and meditating on making a nest or was it
deceased. I'll never know. © Carol Davis, 7-23-2009
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