What is that thing? We were down in Port-au-Prince getting some groceries and stopped by to visit some new acquaintances Art & Cindy Berry. They hail from Bellingham, WA and are a retired couple who have moved to Haiti to help at an orphanage with about 90 kids total.
Our kids enjoyed playing on the swing set, merry go round as well as getting to see 6 newborn puppies. With the puppies the total number of dogs on the property came to something like 11. Emma especially loves the dogs.
We took a tour of the facility and came across this guy up in an African Moringa tree. What is he? Well, he is on a beautifully woven spider web, so he is probably a spider. I have never seen one like that though. He (or she) almost reminds me of a hermit crab, like he is carrying some kind of spiked shell on his back. There are some amazing creatures in Haiti to go along with the rats, cockroaches and nasty little gnats.
Turns out he is probably some type of crab spider in the order Araneae. Notice his forward facing legs. There are six with two hidden under that armor plate on his back called a scuta. Scuta comes from the Roman word for shield. He has some interesting spikes protruding from the shield. Not too tasty for a predator. Say hello to another of God's wonderful creatures.
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