tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20078507.post254871001530061053..comments2023-11-18T09:51:52.115+10:30Comments on Medlar Comfits: Fresher than that from "the fresh food people"anna tambourhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01338581782386113668noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20078507.post-83480698215855393172008-03-20T18:32:00.000+10:302008-03-20T18:32:00.000+10:30To provide enough food for each wasp grub. It's sp...To provide enough food for each wasp grub. It's spiders here (and not just any spider), but wasps are very picky. Some pack in grubs of certain species of beetles; others, adult beetles, but as with other foods, all beetles are not food alike. Certain caterpillars, bees, and if wasps were big enough, humans (but probably not just any human) could be considered the perfect rearing food, depending upon the wasp species. And how much observation has been done on personal preference? For wasps do have personalities. Some cut off the limbs of spiders, just as some would cut off our lap-top-connected limb and pluck our blackberries. <BR/>But these spider limbs above have been left attached. They look more plump, juicy and delicious than the priciest crustaceans sold fresh from the shop. <BR/><BR/>My favourite book dedication is by (Stanford professor emeritus) George D. Shafer, to someone he named "Crumple-Wing" and called "a friend", a mud dauber wasp who taught him "that adult females of this species possess a nervous system which, though tiny in size, enables them to remember, to learn, and to show individuality."<BR/>George D. Shafer, The Ways of a Mud Dauber, 1949, Stanford, California, Stanford University Press<BR/><BR/>A beautiful book filled with both rigorous scientific observation and an unrestrained love of life.anna tambourhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01338581782386113668noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20078507.post-59403709110446130782008-03-19T21:19:00.000+10:302008-03-19T21:19:00.000+10:30cor blimey i like the colours. Why are all these s...cor blimey i like the colours. Why are all these spiders gathered in the same place? <BR/>Steve Asteve ayletthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02891375139843590473noreply@blogger.com