In my last post I found what I thought were the remains of some kind of a spider, parasitized by some unknown creature.
I posted the picture on bugguide. It was recognized right away as a bolas spider. But there is nothing wrong with it. That is just the way they look.
I had poked and prodded it but it had not responded. So I saved the leaf and spider in a jar.
I transfered it back to the wild today, and I did get it to come out a little more.
They are called bolas spiders because they dangle silk with a drop of liquid, looking something like a bolas. It uses that silk to capture flies.
Here is another look at it.
That’s a weird-looking spider.
