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Project Noah Nature School
Hibana sp.
Spider spotted in my front yard. Its two front legs are considerably shorter than the others, and are a burgundy color similar to its mouthparts. I watched it clean the front legs for a while once it stopped spinning its web.
It was using the petals of some impatiens to make its web.
Oh wow! That's very good insight. I hadn't noticed the nubs until you said that, although when I was watching him, I was surprised to see a web because I counted six legs and assumed it couldn't be a spider.
Nice spotting! This spider is actually missing its front legs. Your first photo shows the nubs quite well. The two structures at the very front are his pedipalps and are used for food manipulation, sperm transfer, and other jobs. They are not used as walking legs. I wish I could offer some ID assistance but I'm not sure what this one is other than a male.
Spotted on Jun 21, 2012
Submitted on Jun 21, 2012
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