Goldenrod Crab Spider with skipper butterfly (Nancy Ronson)
My wife, Nancy, caught this scene on the morning of June 9 as she was picking flowers in our meadow garden at our cottage on Mississagua Lake.
Observer: John Ronson, Mississauga Lake
(Note: This is a Goldenrod Crab Spider – Misumena vatia. It is commonly found hunting in goldenrod flowers in late summer. It does not build a web but uses camouflage as a strategy to catch unsuspecting insects like this skipper butterfly. These spiders may be yellow or white, depending on the flower in which they are hunting. D.M.)
