To what purpose, spiders, do you come again?
*sigh*
The Dolophones comes in two kinds: turrigera which has a turret-like protrusion, and the conifera, which… looks like a conifer. Yes. Like a tree.
They’re a harbinger of spring, just like the other multiplicities of things which creep, crawl, and fly. These… can look a lot like sticks; the dolophones conifera is entirely flat, and can wrap around a piece of wood for camouflage. Just Google “wraparound spider.” You’ll be … glad? you did.
Dolophones?
Near Australia’s central coast –
Oasis of more cultured folk
Twigs thought to be mere lifeless wood
Hide sly shape-shifters, savvy. Most
Arachnids – bugs – uncommon shaped still
Navigate a liminal space –
Keenly admired by science peeps
Spiders still give this girl the creeps…
A-Mazing camouflage!
Inquiring minds want to know how you landed on THIS species for your poem!
I follow Strange Animals on Twitter and it was their “neat spider of the hour” last week. It IS neat, but… really makes you want to stop picking up sticks. Immediately.
Okay. ewww. We have a LOT of spiders around here and I DO NOT like them. Some very big, furry and carrying backpacks. Never knew about dolophones. Genius camouflage, but that makes them even scarier.
Babe, repeat to yourself: THEY’RE IN AUSTRALIA. They’re in AUSTRALIA.
…and let’s hope they don’t get passports.