Just When You Thought it was Safe to Go Back in the Water!

Six-Spotted Fishing Spider at the Wetland, May 20, 2021

Six-spotted fishing spiders are quite common on and around the water at the wetland. And probably under the water as well. Like many of the aquatic insects, these spiders have water-repellent hairs on their body that trap air and allow them to remain underwater for perhaps as long as 30 to 45 minutes or maybe even longer. I got too close to one for its comfort earlier this week and it disappeared under the water in a blink of an eye.  They don't just dive under though to avoid danger -- they are also able to hunt under water and will eat tadpoles, aquatic insects and small fish (though not at the wetland -- fish are not on the menu there because there are no fish!) 

In the photo at the bottom of this post is another six-spotted fishing spider. Notice how it is resting on a leaf, but has its front four legs extended onto the water. This is because these spiders are sensitive to vibrations in the water just as other spiders are sensitive to vibrations in their webs. The right vibrations may very well mean that dinner is served (note the tadpoles just under the water in the photo below -- potential dinner). In addition to diving underwater they are also able to move on top of the water thanks to a water repellent coating on their legs that keeps them from breaking the water's surface. The first resource listed below describe three methods they have for moving across the surface of the water as well as a lot of other good information.

As with many spider species, male spiders are about half the size of females.  Males mature in a year and females in two years. (The males may or may not see a second year, depending on whether or not their mates eat them at the end of their first year.) Mature females have bodies approaching an inch in length and a leg-span of around three inches, so they are impressive spiders, not to mention attractive. Incidentally, the "six-spotted" part of the name refers to dark spots on the underside, not the numerous light-colored spots that are visible on the upper side.

Since they live from one to two years, they overwinter and do so under objects near the water.  The fact that the wetland does not remain wet all year most years is probably not an issue for these spiders because they are able to hunt on land as well. 

They are part of a group of spiders known as the nursery web spiders because the female spins a silk egg case to deposit her eggs into and then carries that around with her in her mouth until they are about ready to hatch. She then spins a "nursery web" and attaches the egg case there and, get this, sticks around to guard the eggs and then the spiderlings until they are ready to venture off about a week after hatching. We probably won't see any fishing spiders on mother's day cards in the near future, but it's not because they're not good moms!

Six-Spotted Fishing Spider at the Wetland, April 14, 2021

For more information see

  • https://sercblog.si.edu/the-everyday-naturalist-fishing-spiders/
  • https://uwm.edu/field-station/6-spotted-fishing-spider/
  • https://spiderid.com/spider/pisauridae/dolomedes/triton/


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