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comments on strange "bugs" in New Jersey

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Anonymous

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To all:

I have spoken, before, about a breed of spider I have been encountering in the West Caldwell, New Jersey, who seem to prefer to spin webs on brightly colored metal objects, usually traffic signs, and which seem able to grow to respectable sizes of an inch and a half or more. On Saturday, October 11, 2003, I saw another of this apparent breed. This was, apparently, setting up a web on, this time, the bright orange colored honor box used by the Star Ledger newspaper. This is the first time I had seen one of these spiders on an honor box. It was also the first time I had seen one facing the sun. The spider looked as the spiders in the other pictures suggest, with horizontal zebra stripes across the back of its abdomen. With the sun shining on it, however, the streaks appeared to shine like silver.

October 11 also saw another unusual encounter with a "bug" in New Jersey. Climbing on the door jamb of the rest room of a gas station at the intersection of Broad Street and Bellevue Avenue, in Bloomfield, I saw something that, initially, looked like an ant. It seemed to have the same kind of three part body structure that ants do, and the same "bent" antennae. It was a little under half and inch long and dark brown. However, looking at it for some time, I only saw four legs! All insects are supposed to have six legs! That all but defines them! This creature, however, had only four legs, that I could see. And it did not seem to be a misinterpretation. As it moved, the creature regularly preened its antennae, running its leg along it, like a cat might clean its face. Normally, ants that I have seen have preened both their antennae at the same time, running their forelegs along them, simultaneously. They could do this, because they have four other legs to hold them up, while they do this. With only four legs, the creature could not use both its forelegs simultaneously to clean its antennae. It would fall forward! And this creature was cleaning its antennae one at a time! It would run its right foreleg along its right entenna, for a second, the it would put its right leg down, and use its left leg to clean the antenna on that side! If an ant had lost its two middle legs, it is not immediately likely that it would have developed such alternate behavior so quickly! It looks very much as if this creature only had four legs from birth!

The unusual behavior and size we saw in the spiders that inhabit traffic signs, we thought might be related to the effect of electric lines, in the area. There seem no electric lines where I saw the ant-like creature in Bloomfield, however. It may be the effect of some contaminant in the soil, that is not acknowledged, that may have caused what I saw on October 11.

If there are any similar accounts, they can be of interest.



Julian Penrod
 
Probably instinctually wants to have its web near bright, flower-like things that draw in flying insects.

I've noticed a certain type of spider here in AL runs a line of web near artificial lights in the summer.
 
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