P. Cardinalis - Adult femaleOk, so this is the female Cardinal jumper that I talked about in my last
P. Cardinalis - Adult femaleOk, so this is the female Cardinal jumper that I talked about in my last post. The interesting thing about this girl is that a friend of mine sent me her just before her ultimate molt. I shot her, fed her, and let her run around the day I got her. Then she made her sac and disappeared inside of it for a week. I knew she was molting. But usually when jumpers molt they really take their time coming back out. I misted her enclosure one day, and she sprung out of her sac and was running around like crazy. Afraid to feed her yet, I grabbed my camera and took these shots. She was so excited to get out and run around… this is strange compared to most who come out slow and hesitant (which they do because their exoskeleton is still soft so they are vulnerable). But in the last shot where she’s staring up at me, notice the metallic just formed on her chelicerae. It hadn’t even hardened yet. This is a very rare stage to capture on camera. After minutes it hardened, as you can see in the other shots.She really was a spectacular subject to photograph. I had several great sessions and she lived a long and happy life afterwards. -- source link
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