I brought home two jumping spiders from work last week, a tiny one that I found on a milkweed plant and another, a giant jumper, that a coworker scooped up for me in the shed.  Imagining myself to be Thomas Shahan, I twisted on my extension tubes, set my flashes, and released the giant into my whitebox to photograph him/her.  Then I promptly lost it.  I picked up the sheets of paper in the bottom and shook everything out and couldn’t find it.  I was beginning to be worried it had jumped in my hair or something when I saw it clamor over the back of my large flash.  It loved that flash!  Any time I lost track of it, I’d soon find it sitting on the flash again.  So, I took a couple of shots of it up there, just because it amused me that it loved the flash so much:

Jumping spider, in love with the flash

I am leaning toward Phidippus otiosus on this one, based on the colors and pattern on the upper surface of the abdomen.  Anyone want to contest that?

Happy Wednesday everyone!

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