A man, a plan, a kayak, a camera!

lpw

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Feb 15, 2005
Messages
193
I set out to find some Dolomedes tenebrosus on the shores of Temperance Lake near Athens, Ontario. From previous excursions, I knew that they like to hang out on the rocky shores near the water line. None of the specimens I found were full grown yet, but I saw quite a few juveniles/young adults.

Balancing a kayak, holding on to the paddle, drinking a beer, and focusing a macro lens were not easy to accomplish in parallel :embarrassed:, but I managed to snap a few pics nonetheless... :)







 

lpw

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Feb 15, 2005
Messages
193
Here's a pic of the habitat:




Any suggestions on the id of the following sider? Looks like a Pisaurid to me, but I have no idea as to the species or even genus:

 

tarcan

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
Mar 8, 2003
Messages
2,097
Gorgeous pics, thanks for sharing... and if really you were in a kayak while taking them, your tha man!:worship:

Martin
 

Sheri

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 29, 2003
Messages
2,355
I know through trial and failure that those dragonflies are damn hard to photograph... those are really, really good photos.

The only success (and I use that term loosely) is when they're near death, when I'm holding them, or when they're reloading sperm. And that's kinda cheating, no matter how you look at it!
 

lpw

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Feb 15, 2005
Messages
193
Thanks for the encouraging words. It's nice to be able to share these experiences with like-minded people -- this is a great forum!

Sheri, I found that there's a "trick" to photographing dragonflies: they tend to return to the same resting spot. The initial approach will most likely spook a resting dragonfly and it'll fly off. While it's buzzing around, I slowly get in position next to the resting spot. When (and if) it comes back, I'm ready to take pictures. Of course, this doesn't always work, but some of the posted pics were obtained using this strategy.

And it helps to be in the woods of northern Ontario, where you're always surrounded by dense clouds of mosquitoes -- dragonfly bait, absolutely free :). Apparently there are (or at least used to be) wrist gadgets that mimic the vibrations emitted by hovering dragonflies. They're supposed to repel mosquitoes. I'm not convinced. Moreover, they make for really boring photos :rolleyes:.

Martin, most of the pics were indeed taken from a kayak. Not the dragonflies though, and not the jumper. Those were taken during a hike in the surrounding area.

More excursions planned, I'll keep ya posted.

Lukasz
 

Arietans

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Jun 14, 2006
Messages
288
Great pics. Awesome awesome awesome

The habitat looks like a place I would love to get lost in for a few weeks :)
 

lpw

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Feb 15, 2005
Messages
193
Arietans said:
The habitat looks like a place I would love to get lost in for a few weeks :)
Great idea! Let's trade places!
 

gunslinger

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Dec 6, 2006
Messages
356
Very awesome stuff. I love Dolomedes. I think your second pic, the spider with the lighter margins, may be a Dolomedes scriptus.

As for that unknown spider.............really cool.............I agree it looks like a Pisaurid, but I have never seen a spider from either Dolomedes or Pisaurina genus that is very similiar to that. Whatever it is I wish I had found it. :D
 
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