The spider of the month is this subadult male pelican spider (Afrarchaea cornuta; family Archaeidae), found by Ruan Booysen in the Vernon Crookes Nature Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal, and photographed by me, Rudi Steenkamp. Ruan found him among some grass tussocks, and was quite excited because this was one of the spiders on his bucket list. He … Read more

The spider of the month is this male Evarcha sp. jumping spider (most likely Evarcha prosimilis), taken by Rudi Steenkamp (me) in Bloemfontein. There are 92 recorded Evarcha species in the world, with 16 occurring in South Africa. They are generally rather dull in colour (usually brown), but some males are an exception, such as E. prosimilis and E. ignea with these red faces. … Read more

The spider of the month is this flat crab spider (Platythomisus sibayius; Thomisidae), taken by Brian Ashby in the Ngamo Forestry Area bordering Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe. Brian took this photo in 2015. He found her on the hood of his car after driving through long grass, kept her for the night, and then … Read more