Unusual way of drinking

[Andrew Ferguson]

I went to have one of my usual stares at Smiffy and saw him/her stood in an usual stance. High up on his/her legs as if something was underneath. And there was! A huge (by a juvenile t's standards!) water droplet. I couldn't get my camera in the home to get a proper photo, so here is one through the side of the translucent side. I couldn't use a flash as it would just reflect on the side. So trust me on this one, the area I have highlighted is a water droplet right by or on the mouth opening. I hope you find this as fascinating as I do.



So, is this unusual or have you all seen this way of taking a beverage before?

[Guy Tansley]

Hi Andrew,
yes, perfectly normal behaviour that I've seen many times.
It's thought to be part of the cleaning process, the spider 'back-flushes' the mouth area with fluid to remove any particles of food etc.