WILDWATCH: IN THE GARDEN JUNGLE, PRETTY SPIDERS THAT JUMP 
by ANNE WILKINSON.
Moving a pile of weeds I had pulled up this week to take to the compost heap my eye was caught by a movement on a green leaf at the bottom of the pile.
Naturally, I investigated, and discovered a little spider with a cheeky face reminiscent of a monkey, and very large, dark eyes. It was bright green, like the leaf, and, not wasting any time being looked at, it gave a huge leap. It landed on a flower where apparently it felt safer.
This most unspider-like behaviour identified it immediately as a jumping spider. These tiny creatures belong to a large and varied family. With the biggest being about 15mm – about a centimetre and a half in length – they are not always easy to find, but when one does their antics are certainly worth watching. Some species are brightly coloured.
Having jumping spiders in the garden is a real asset, and most gardens will have them, though because of their tiny size it is easy to miss these fierce little hunters which hunt their prey like lions and tigers by scoping them out and leaping on them.
Their presence, and the presence of spiders and useful insects in general, provides a very good argument for not using insecticides. The more beneficial little hunters in a garden, the better, and one prey of jumping spiders is the mosquito though they will take much larger prey such as moths as well. Size seems to mean nothing to them.
Jumping spiders are creatures of the day, so to that extent they are more available to we humans for inspection. Not all, but many varieties, weave little web nests hidden in dry leaves or places like holes in tree roots in which they spend the night, while others use web lines while they rest.
Spiders are not insects. They are arachnids, which are physically very different from insects. There are more than 2000 different known arachnid species in Australia. While some spiders are large and can give a nasty bite, jumping spiders, being so small, are simply useful and entertaining. They can be found everywhere but more varieties live here in the tropics than in cooler regions.
Of course, some spider species are huge, and these can pack a nasty bite. Generally speaking though, just like so many other creatures, spiders do not regard we humans as prey so unless we are perceived to threaten them they are unlikely to bite. Another comforting fact is that study has proved it takes the spider a lot of energy to create venom, so it will not use up its venom store without reward unless it feels thoroughly cornered.
The best strategy when confronted with a large spider is simply to walk away, but it is always a good idea to wear gloves when working in wood heaps or other areas where large or potentially dangerous spiders, or indeed snakes, are likely to be found.
To get a really good look at a jumping spider, take a magnifying glass with you. And don’t be fooled, it really is looking straight back at you with those beautiful, luminous eyes. Like all arachnids, jumping spiders have six to eight eyes, arranged in twos. It is only the large eyes on the front of the “face” that we humans can see easily.
The old saying about there being more wonders in Heaven and Earth…. How true that is.
With continuing pressure on honey bees and their consequent drop in numbers, the spotlight for pollination falls ever more increasingly on native bees.
An interesting story in the current issue of Wildlife Australia Magazine, published by the Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland, features several important native bee species, all occurring in the Cassowary Coast.
Those most often seen here are the tiny black stingless bees which are usually visible where there are flowers needing their attention. They store honey and are available commercially, as are native hives.
Keep an eye open too for the big, handsome bees with pale blue stripes on their abdomen. These are blue banded bees and are often seen in gardens where they are proven pollinators, even working their magic on greenhouse tomatoes!
One’s first meeting with the big (24mm) carpenter bee can be a bit of a shock because the female has a truly huge buzz. Some species of carpenter bees are friends of the highly endangered mahogany glider because they nest in the flower spikes of grass trees – Xanthorrhoea – whose nectar is a glider delicacy and important food source.
With spring here and the weather warming, these energetic little creatures are important workers in the complex factory that is the natural world, with the added bonus that they lend a hand to we humans, too.
Wildwatch is provided by the Tully branch of the Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland: enquiries to 4066 5466 or 4066 5650. To contact the emergency 24-hour Wildcare hotline, phone 0439 687 272. Phone DERM on 1300 130 372 to report concerns about cassowaries and mahogany gliders.
PIC:Jumping spider 24.5.12:
HUNTING: Yvonne Cunningham had to be quick to photograph this tiny jumping spider in her garden at Coquette Point.