11 | March | 2020 | Nature's Place

Black Wasp

Already debilitated but job not done yet. Wasp resumes work on dismembering spider.

Powerful and efficient butcher, the wasp takes no chances and makes no mistakes.

Resumes her butchery in a forceful manner, expressive of her no-nonsense ways.

She inspects spider to maintain methodology, removing those long and – could be – deadly legs.

Using her wings now to increase traction on the object of her desire. Time is of the essence.

Spiders legs can often regrow, but not this time … Severing another leg to make flying easier.

Change of position, having a go at the deadly mandibles, which may still be a threat – if only to her young.

Job almost done, package nearly ready, she prepares to carry spider away to her home in the BBB’s nest.

Spider legs strewn about. Package almost ready to fly. One last go at those venom packed mandibles.

I was pottering around the house and saw this Huntsman limping along the ground.

Limping because some legs were missing and it couldn’t run as Huntsmen do so well.

Limping out into open space when ordinarily it would be in the opposite direction, under cover.

So, thinking it might be confused (for some reason), I gave it a nudge towards the undergrowth.

But it wasn’t having it, kept on heading out into open space and nothing I could do about it.

Then the black wasp with yellow antennae showed up and attacked the spider with a will.

It had already been working on it, spider confused by venom but not yet subdued.

So she, the wasp, stung the spider again, and again, and proceeded to dismember it.

To carry it away to her nest at the edge of the garden, to feed her young.

What they do, we do … our existential nature.