המועדפים של magrietb

I rarely see baboon spiders in the veld. This one made its presence known by rather frantic running up restio stems. The problem soon became apparent: a very large spider-wasp was standing nearby. We guessed it had already stung the spider and was waiting for paralysis to set in. I suppose some would say that one should let nature take its course, but I can't think of a much more horrific way to die, being eaten alive. So i took it 50m away and left it hidden under a large rock. I guess it will die anyway, though someone said they revived a stung rainspider.

(see pic 2 for retrolateral scopula which distinguishes this genus from other Theraphosidae see danni_sherwood's comments below)

Erica pinea x viscaria macrosepala.
Middle flower in close-ups.
Parent plants growing alongside each other. this plant with 4 locules (4 in vis. mac., 8 in pinea), ovary sparsely hairy (hairy in vis. mac., glabrous in pinea), sepals narrowly lanceolate (broadly lanceolate in vis. mac., oblanceolate in pinea).

Guessing!
I was combing through clumps of Eragrostis curvula looking for larval webs of Gorgopis when I came across this sandy, spongy blob, apparently fixed at the bottom of the clump. I pulled on the blob which exposed a robust grass tunnel at the base, which was sunk in to the root area of the grass, I pulled the bag apart - it was made of a tough felty material - but could find no occupants. The bag was flattened horizontally, not vertically in examples I've seen of silk pursers. Any other suggestions welcome!

25 Oct: Long, tidily constructed tube sticking up from a hole in the ground. No inhabitant activity seen.
The tube was removed and left next to the hole.

26 Oct: A new small tube had been started overnight. There had been some fiddling with the original tube.

27 Oct: A portion of the original tube had been cut off and attached to the short new tube.

29 Oct: Three more burrows and grass tunnels found in a 2x2m area around the original burrow.
The tube was removed from burrow 2. On re-inspection 4hrs later the burrow entrance had been concealed by cut grass pieces.
The tube was removed from burrow 4 - on re-inspection the entrance had been sealed with a very strong lattice of transparent threads.

30 Oct: Five more tubes found, total now 9 in an area of 4x4m.

20 Nov: Attempted excavation of larva resulted in the lower half of a larva being recovered.

21 Nov: Larva seen (and photographed) moving bits of vegetation in the early morning (04:53) Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoVSiIsogcs

22 Nov: tubes continue to be repaired or replaced.

23 Nov: larva excavated in the early morning and housed, with its host plant, in a bucket covered with shadecloth.

28 Nov: a thorough search of the thick grass was done and 5 more tubes were discovered in the 4x4m area. Interestingly, one tube is considerably narrower than the regular sized tubes and another was found of an intermediate size.

10 Dec: no signs of the captive larva, found it dead and dry under the host grass.

18 Jan: Larvae still active - two damaged tubes were repaired on 18 and 22 Jan

16 March: live larva collected

5 Apr (approx): pupated. See https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/110835074

19 May Adult eclosed. See https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/117838457

14 Mar 2023: Second site found https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/151118075

Ambush life in a tub

6 Aug 2017:

I collected an adult ambush bug with 10 eggs on Diastella thymelaeoides at Pringle Bay.

17 Sep 2017:

Three of the eggs hatched. I had no idea how I would to keep these chappies alive, and indeed the first hatchling soon died. But then I discovered that they like flies, we had a heatwave and I became an expert at nabbing those tiny little ones on the window with a wet finger. Yum!

The adult was identified by Dawid Jacobs as Narina capensis, please see https://www.ispotnature.org/communities/southern-africa/view/observation/746065/pringle-bay-ambush-bug-with-eggs-currently-being-reared
I hope to double confirm this as soon as the offspring complete their life cycle.

Kleinmond little looper #3 currently being reared

22 April 2019:

Found caterpillar purely by chance on foodplant while I was taking care of the others. It was actually its amazingly dedicated commitment to the I'm-a-twig mode of camouflage that helped me find it - Erica serrata doesn't have straight green twigs! But the colouring is spot on, and indeed whenever I check on it I take a minute or so to find it again.