As I was walking on a low boardwalk yesterday at the Phinizy Swamp Nature Park in Augusta, GA, I spotted this Six-spotted Fishing spider (Dolomedes triton) at the edge of the water on a leaf. These spiders wait for prey with several of their legs in the water and capture other invertebrates, tadpoles, and sometimes even small fish, according to Wikipedia, when they feel the vibrations in the water.
It will probably be several months before I begin to see insects in Northern Virginia, but my brief trip to Georgia has given me a foretaste of things to come.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Mike Powell 
Amazing arachnid!
A real beauty, Mike. I’m sure you won’t have to wait anywhere near that long before you’re seeing insects and spiders in N. VA–I saw a small, gray spider in the leaves around the sprouting crocuses here in Omaha just a couple of days ago. Also, a minor point–the fishing spider rests with several legs on the surface of the water, not in it. They can actually walk quite well on the surface, as well as go beneath it, carrying a bubble of air that they can breathe–a really amazing development.
Thanks for the clarification, Gary, and the additional information. I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled for those insects. I probably should have taken the time to use my macro lens on the fishing spider, but opted to use the telephoto zoom that I had on the camera at the time of the photo. I’d love to see a fishing spider walking on water–something for the future.
[…] If you want to see a few more images of these interesting spiders, check out my previous postings Fishing spider waiting for prey and Fishing in the swamp. […]