O body swayed to music, O brightening glance,
The lady, with meal How can we know the dancer from the dance?
- William Butler Yeats
A glittering jewel of an arachnid, sparkly gold against the bright green leaf of a Cup Plant, holding a shriveled prize--perhaps an aphid. From below, a swift fellow approaches, waving his decoratively tufted forelegs as if flagging down a passing motorist for assistance. The glittery gal flees with her lunch, leaving the male dancing with himself.
I first met the elegant dancer few years ago, a male Tutelina elegans jumping spider, but this was the first time I've encountered the object of his passion. I can see why he adores her, with her brilliantly robust abdomen and intense array of eyes. Not to mention her no-nonsense attitude: who has time for courtship when you've got a delicious aphid ready to devour?
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| The gentleman |
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| The gentleman below, lady in upper right |
Once she disappeared into the foliage, the male continued his dance over and around the leaves, first sidling to the left, then the right, all the time brandishing his forelegs in what one can only assume to be a beguiling display of arachnid choreography and masculinity.
The video below doesn't do justice to his moves, but I assure you it was quite alluring.
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