Bold twin selfies

At East Metropolitan Park on March 25th I ended up with twin selfies in the central eyes of this bold jumper (Phidippus audax). The iridescent green appendages, visible from a meter away, are called chelicerae.

Believe it or not, this species is New Hampshire’s official state spider. Why any state legislature needs to waste time designating an official spider is beyond me—but then making sure kids get a good education seems to be beyond the power of state legislatures, so they have to fill their time with something.

And speaking of seeming, what may look to you like volcanic rock is actually the foam mat I carry around with me to ease kneeling, sitting, and lying on the ground. This time it served as a good spider stage. An elevated stage it was, too: I held it with my left hand while wielding the camera with my right hand.

© 2022 Steven Schwartzman