Re: Cover Shot

[Mark Cassino]

Thanks everyone!

Entomological details - she's a black and yellow garden spider, Argiope 
aurantia.  If you are not familiar with them, they are really pretty big - 
the body alone is ~3 inches long.  I ran into her in the prairie 
restoration area that is one of my main shooting grounds in the 
summer.  This is the most staid of the photos - after I got a few of her 
just sitting there a male Argiope arrived (he was  a lot smaller).  That 
lead to a sequence of them mating and him departing.  He then either 
returned, or another male decided to try his luck, and that lead to yet 
another series of shots showing the female eating the male. wrapping him in 
silk, and chucking him out of the web.  I have to get those up on my 
website someday.

Unfortunately AE does not pay for photos or articles, but its a great way 
to reach a broad audience.   A few months ago I had the cover shot on a 
children's bood on paper wasps - that was paying sale and as nice as it 
was, it was not as fun as the AE cover!

Thanks again!

- MCC
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Mark Cassino
Kalamazoo, MI
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
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Photos:
http://www.markcassino.com
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