for Mr Reasonable
Now, is she not beautiful? Please, click on the photo for a really nice close up…
Just look at those velvety stripes…!
Reading the wonderful Forster & Forster reveals the interesting life of these spiders (Dolomedes minor). For five weeks over summer, the female carries a sac the size of a pea, full of eggs, around with her. Somehow she knows when the spiderlings are about to hatch, because at that point she climbs a nearby shrub to spin the nurseryweb around the egg sac.
Not long after, the spiderlings hatch. The mother stays around for a week or so to guard the nursery.
And by the second week both the mother and the spiderlings have gone, leaving behind just the tattered nursery web…
Dr Martha Farquhar
19 March 2006, 22:00 #
Dear Mr Half-pie
Mr Reasonable won’t be into work tomorrow.
We should have him cleaned up by Thursday afternoon, but please don’t pull any stunts like this again.
Sincerely
Dr Martha Wanda Harland Farquhar.
Alan
19 March 2006, 22:37 #
I am sorry to hear that.
I was hoping that gradual introduction of relatively harmless arachnid pictures into Mr Reasonable’s life would slowly allow a sort of psychological acclimatisation and that after some months he would no longer suffer from issues.
It is clear that I should have obtained professional advice before undertaking this somewhat risky action.
I apologise for any distress this picture may have caused.
Mr Reasonable
20 March 2006, 09:53 #
[shudder] I shall be “depositing” a small parcel into your office drawer at some point today.