Dancer with Eight Legs by Chipka
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Description
There were songs that night; a few of them came in the sustained key of human inebriation. There were tuneless meanderings: the voice of Nature for anyone with ears enough to hear them. Some of them were silent—the brush of a moth’s wing against glass: the footsteps of industrious ants foraging for sugar, for the meat of other insects, or sap exuded wounded branches. The most intriguing song was the rhythmic tap-tap-tap of a spider’s feet on the flamboyance of wilting blossoms. It was a silent song, far beyond the range of human hearing, but a song, nonetheless…a rhythm, an implied tale of life and death and the sensuous dance between the two.
It was a small song; lost in the sound of traffic and blaring, primate inebriation.
There was a dancer, carried on the grace of eight long, multi-jointed legs. She wore the colors of silk with a hint of chlorophyll. She wore countless hairs on the serene sweep of her abdomen. For those engaged in louder, brasher songs, and the stories they implied, she was invisible. Insignificant. Unimportant. For those in tune with a quieter, tuneless music, she was a vital component of the night: a fellow creature, comfortable in the warm, breezy darkness. She avoided those entranced in louder, brasher, more primate-inspired music. She revealed herself to others of her own kind: night predators in search of food, or prey for the camera’s lens.
There is trust among predators, and—at times—grudging cooperation. She sought food. I sought subjects. In this way, there were no major distinctions between her and me. I understood this. She understood this, and for a moment, we shared the same song—woven in silence, shadow, and dappled, plant-wilted light.
* * *
I found this spider last night, as I hunted for subjects along the northbound stretch of Halstead Street. It was warm and loud. Tour busses traced their ways through Chicago’s “BoysTown” neighborhood, filled with screaming, drunken frat boys and sorority girls, impressed with their shared ability to sing off key and hoot like ecstatic chimpanzees at the thrilling onset of a thunderstorm.
I was interested in something quieter, and so I found this spider on a decorative shrub. She found me, and understood a shared need, and so she remained still for the duration of one camera-click, and then—with impeccable, arachnid grace—continued foraging for small, tasty things with six legs.
As always, thank you for viewing, reading, and commenting.
Comments (25)
NefariousDrO
How amazing, yesterday my friend and I were fascinated by a very small but very aggressively-built spider. One of the active-hunters rather than web-trappers. That little gal had incredible vision, reacting to cars driving past her view even though they were over 20 feet from the front porch where she entertained us. the shape of her legs reminded me of a scorpion, but I simply don't have a decent means for doing macro photos that small, yet. Anyway, I was thinking of you as I watched that fascinating spider. And somehow today I found myself enjoying a totally different kind of natural music: I'm finding clips of wolves, malamutes, huskies, etc. howling. One of the things I have been lucky enough to experience is the sound of wild wolves howling in the night in the wilds of Ontario and it's like nothing I can possibly describe.
durleybeachbum
Wonderful words and a great pic.
Bossie_Boots
What an amazing capture this is superb !!
flavia49
great capture
sandra46
SUPERB IMAGE!!!
mgtcs
The idea of the eight-legged dancer makes me instantly think of Visnu, the Maintainer of Worlds. Indeed, the beginning of your text refers to the dance of life as described by Charles Darwin (predator, prey, environment...). Superb picture!
anaber
Fabulous capture. Incredible mystery and magical connecting.
DrCarl
"shadow, and dappled plant wilted light....." my god man where does that come from. I could see that light without looking at the picture..... you do have a wonderful way with words not a big fan of spiders so hard to comment on something I really don't like looking at but your words are special cheers Carl
MrsRatbag
A wonderful little snippet of Life as Seen by Chip...an eight-legged dancer? I have trouble enough with two, I can't imagine four times that many. Fascinating capture of the catch of the day/night, and I loved reading your description!
Orinoor
If I don't look at the photo and just the picture your words make in my head, then for a brief period of time I can see a spider as you see them and it's beautiful.
danapommet
Outstanding macro Chip and I can se all eight eyes. Great find and share. Dana
RodS
Great find, Chip! Most of us primates would never have noticed her there - almost looking like part of the plant. Great macro!
KatesFriend
Or perhaps she was looking for a mate.They tend to be the same things for many female arachnids. It's interesting how she seems to become part of the scene so easily. Of coarse, a valuable skill for a predatory arthropod with no wings.
dashboard_jehovah
Interesting find! Nice detail!
treasureprints
Great closeup, Chip...and another great 'about'.:)
kgb224
Stunning capture my friend.
whaleman
She's pretty well hidden in there, good job even finding her!
fallen21
Fantastic shot.
helanker
Chip, I love the way you can discribe a spider, like you know her in person. It is such a fascinating reading. And I love your beautiful shot too.
makron
Great capture. Very well done
bobrgallegos
Wonderful macro and very deep words!!
auntietk
I love the way you describe your small friend. Your intimate relationship with crawly life forms, and the admiration you have for them, comes through. A most excellent bit of writing, my friend!
jac204
Great prose and capture.
MagikUnicorn
Wonderful Macro
myrrhluz
Lovely shot, with her perched in the cup shaped space made by the branches. Spiders have wonderful poses with some legs curled and others stretched out straight. Your descriptions drew me in again. The contrast between the noisy, clumsy world of bipeds and the subtle sounds of other creatures of the night. I could almost hear sounds I never will hear, and see the world from a much smaller perspective. Excellent image and story!