Glynn Hobbs - imageweaver

I love photographing spiders and the following images were all taken with my Nikon D500 and Macro lenses. Whilst many people are scared of Spiders, these fascinating creatures help keep our houses and gardens free from many 'far worse' insects. Garden Spider Spiders are arachnids, a class of arthropods that also includes scorpions, mites, and ticks. There are more than 45,000 known species of spiders, found in habitats all over the world.  Spiders range in size from the tiny Samoan moss spider, which is .011 inch long, to the massive Goliath Birdeater, a tarantula with a leg span of almost a foot. Harvestman Spider For most people, the thought of spiders conjures up images of tarantulas and other (seemingly) fearsome creatures. Though all spiders have venom to one degree or another, only a handful are dangerous to humans. Those include the Black Widow and the Brown Recluse, but neither are found in Europe. Orb Web Spider catches a fly The va...

Whilst I was in the UK photographing these beautiful birds, I experienced huge groups of up to 200 Cormorants, flying from feeding on the coast to their inland roosting sites. It's ironic, that a bird that came so close to extinction during the 20th century, has now reached such large numbers, that it is once again being culled. My search for these birds, took me from the west coast of Scotland, all the way down to Cornwall in the south west of England and then across to the Thames Estuary in the south east, a journey of 600 miles! Skimming the surface of the sea The Cormorant is a large, black, fish-eating bird with a long, hook-tipped bill. They can be seen on both coastal and inland waters. When on water they swim low with their bill raised, and often dive with a leap from the water's surface. Their plumage is not waterproof but this has the advantage of allowing them to dive deep, as buoyancy is reduced. The Shag, which is a close relative, is slig...

There are approximately 120,000 species of flies that have been described by science. The actual number of species in the world is likely to be much larger. Species of flies are grouped into genera and families. Within a family and genus the species may share similar habits and lifestyles such as blood feeding or breeding in filth. Depending on the species, either females, or both sexes of biting flies feed on blood. Biting fly mouth parts also differ based on feeding strategies. A mosquito uses its needlelike proboscis to suck blood, while larger horse flies use slicing appendages to tear flesh. Biting flies often are most active in warm, humid daytime hours and lay their eggs in decaying organic material such as mulch or even in or near bodies of water.  While filth flies do not feed on blood, they are extremely unsanitary, feeding and laying their eggs in trash, feces or decaying material. Filth flies are known carriers of over 100 diseases, including cholera a...

Common and Grey Seals There are two types of seal found around the British Isles; the common seal and the grey seal. Both are relatively common and are even seeing their numbers increase. Other species of seals, such as the harp seal, hooded seal and ringed seal are occasional visitors to UK shores, but sightings of these species are extremely rare. During my 'Kintyre' vist last year, I had the opportunity of getting up close to both Grey and Common seals on a number of occasions. During high-tide, they would be a couple of miles offshore fishing, but when the tide receded, they would haul themselves out of the water on to the rocks at the low-water mark.  Unfortunately for me, the low-water mark was 100 meters out from the rocky shoreline, so I had no other option than to scramble over the rocks and gradually inch my way close enough to them. Trying to get my camera with 200-500mm lens attached, along with my other gear over these rocks (some were ...