{"id":849,"date":"2021-03-17T19:56:23","date_gmt":"2021-03-17T19:56:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zeppmusic.com\/Arthroblog\/?p=849"},"modified":"2021-04-27T01:14:32","modified_gmt":"2021-04-27T01:14:32","slug":"ghosts-in-your-garden","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zeppmusic.com\/Arthroblog\/2021\/03\/17\/ghosts-in-your-garden\/","title":{"rendered":"
Ghosts<\/i> in Your Garden?<\/b>
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You probably do have little “ghosts” (as in ghost spiders<\/b>, of course) in your garden. They are spiders of the family Anyphaenidae and are so named because they not only are active at night, but some of them\u2014such as this one\u2014have a decidedly pale and mostly translucent, ghost-like* 👇<\/a> appearance:<\/p><\/font>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/font>

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\nWulfila albens<\/i> (Hentz, 1847), a Ghost Spider<\/b>\n\n
Photo by John P. Friel, \nsome rights reserved\nunder Creative Commons License (CC BY)<\/a>.
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<\/a>Despite that catchy moniker, though, most ghost spiders, such as the one below, do not share the wan look of Wulfila<\/i>, looking much more like…well…plain old, everyday, small** 👇<\/a> spiders.<\/font><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\nHibana futilis<\/i> (Banks, 1898), Another Ghost Spider<\/b>\n
Photo by D. ZEPP
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Ghost spiders do not make capture webs, and use their silk only for drag lines, egg sacs, and to make resting\/hiding places\u2014often in curled leaves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To catch prey, they rely on speed: They are fast*** 👇<\/a> runners that are known to dash about constantly when hunting. In fact, they often seem to be on little sugar “highs,” training hard to develop their lightning-fast moves by overdosing on the sugars to be found in plant nectars (Taylor and Foster, 1996).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I kept two juveniles alive after their capture last summer, waiting for them to mature so that I could photograph and identify them. On two occasions I opened a jar ever so cautiously to check on its resident after having carefully ascertained that it was not near the opening: Twice there was no spider to be found in the open jar, despite my having seen it moments before in the unopened jar!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In one case it had simply vanished-\u2014as befits a specter\u2014never to be seen again. In the second case, although I did not see it making its escape, I spotted it seconds later hightailing it off the back of my desk, leaving a tiny cloud of dust lingering in the air as I heard the faintest of “meep, meep!<\/em>” sounds.<\/p>\n\n

\nAnd so, I shall try again! <\/a>At this writing, I have another species of ghost spider in the same type of jar. I collected it as a subadult male a week ago, and yesterday it had molted, meaning it’s now a mature, hence identifiable, male. I already knew it to be a ghost spider, and probably Hibana gracilis <\/em>(Hentz, 1847) at that**** 👇<\/a> but, barring yet another escape, I’ll now be able to confirm it.<\/p><\/a>\n\n\n\n\n\n

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\nHibana<\/i><\/b> prob. gracilis<\/i> (Hentz, 1847), the garden ghost spider<\/b>\n
Photo by D. ZEPP
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Sorry for the blurring, but the photo was shot through a jar that is anything-but-optical quality. (The photo is not upside-down, the spider was; note the silken pad from which it’s hanging.) I’m pretty sure this is H. gracilis<\/em>, which would be ever so timely for this posting, as the American Arachnological Society officially recognizes the common name of that species as the “garden ghost spider<\/b>.”

Now the trick is not letting this one get away before a photo shoot! <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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*👆<\/a> \nI guess, basing ghosts’ assumed appearances on movies and cartoons.<\/p>\n<\/a>\n\n\n\n

**👆<\/a>\n Depending on the species, anyphaenid adults are generally 4-8mm long.<\/p>\n<\/a>\n\n\n\n

***👆<\/a>\n When I write “fast,” I really mean FAST!<\/b><\/i><\/p>\n<\/a>\n\n\n\n

<\/a>****👆<\/a>\nEven immature anyphaenid spiders are distinguishable from look-alike families by the location of their spiracular furrows: furthermore, the location of those in the genus Hibana<\/i> is unique among anyphaenid genera. Therefore, this specimen, even as a juvenile, could be determined to be Hibana<\/i> on that character alone\u2014and superficially, it looks just like H. gracilis,<\/i> which is very common hereabouts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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