As a child they were the stuff of nightmares. My spider sense still tingles, but no longer in fear
I remember having always kept my distance from Arachnids as a child. Quite often have tarantulas turned up in the toilet, and quite often have I persuaded my parents to smash them with a broom. A few have scampered over my body while I was asleep, and many have invaded my nightmares. But since I turned to photography and nature watching, I have made my peace with spiders, and yet retained my curiosity about them. Including those that intruded my personal space.
 |
| Spiders to most are justifiably creepy. They crawl, spin webs and drink their victims’ juices… |
They were everywhere when we went out for a stroll in the forests of Dandeli two weeks ago. And all kinds of them. There were Giant Wood Spiders (Nephilia maculata) and the handsome Black Wood Spiders (Nephilia kuhili), and a couple of (suspected) Leucauge spiders, and several unidentified ones. Mostly, I enjoyed watching and photographing those amazing Giant and Black Wood Spiders, and here is what I saw.
 |
| Lady Blackwood? |
Giant Wood Spider enjoys the quiet of a misty morning
The Lady and her tramp (the tiny black speck to the right is Mr Giant Wood Spider). Talk about equality for women…
 |
| Possibly a Leucauge spider – can someone confirm? |
 |
| The underside of a Giant Wood Spider. Is the red funnel a vent? |
 |
| Another Leucauge spider performing a high wire walk |
 |
| Topsy turvy |
 |
| End of show. That’s all, folks! |
Sandeep Somasekharan (or Sandy as friends call him) took his headlong plunge into photography with a three-megapixel Nikon point-and-shoot he purchased in 2003. The avid reader and an occasional scribbler started enjoying travel and nature more as he spent more time photographing. Meeting Beej in 2008 helped him channel his creative energies in the form of essays and nature photographs that he started publishing on the Green Ogre. Sandy loves to photograph birds and landscapes, and considers photography and writing as his meditation.
He is an engineer by education, IT professional by vocation, and a hopeless dreamer since creation.
He is an engineer by education, IT professional by vocation, and a hopeless dreamer since creation.
Latest posts by Sandy (see all)
- Costa Rica Diaries – Parting Gifts - May 5, 2024
- Costa Rica Day 6 – Resplendent Quetzal: Part Bird, Part God and Full-Time Economy Driver - April 17, 2024
- Costa Rica Day 5 – Toucan Trees and Wild Dreams Coming True - March 22, 2024
