Surprise – my spider wish came true!

Yesterday after supper, James wished me well before I set out to bug hunt. "Hope you find a new species," he said. I smiled and shrugged. Seems like they're getting harder to find these days.

In the back yard, I was on my way to collect seeds from our Alamo vine growing on a fence when I spotted some silken lines reflecting in the evening sunlight. Why, of course, I stopped in my tracks. Hmm, gotta be an orbweaver near by, I thought to myself. I looked up and over ... and then I did the happy dance! A lot! 

There she was on her web, a spinybacked orbweaver (Gasteracantha cancriformis)! My first EVER! I'd always hoped to find one in our gardens. And after all these years, my wish finally came true. With help from my macro lens and post editing, my images came out well of this small spider. I shared the pictures on Facebook, and a lot of friends were amazed. I guess this species isn't seen very often. I can sure attest to that!