Yesterday while hiking in the woods of Levy County, Florida, I stumbled upon the coolest spider I have ever found! From a distance, it looked like bird poop, atop a stalk of Florida Paintbrush (Carphephorus corymbosus).

As I got closer, it became apparent that the object was a spider, so being unfamiliar with it, I proceeded to take a few photos.  When I reviewed the photos on the display window, I could not believe the faces that jumped out at me!

How many faces do you see on this spider?  Using some imagination, I saw 6 faces staring back at me, there in the forest.  [At home on my computer screen, I saw even more!]  So it seemed that I had found the perfect Halloween spider!

But there are even more faces to be seen on this spider.  Here is the head-on view, which reveals additional faces, including its real face!

This is really pretty remarkable!  However, as if all these faces weren’t enough, the posterior view of this spider displays one of the most charming faces in all of nature! That’s right, a spider butt shaped like a heart, with lips puckered for a big kiss!

So, it appears that Wagneriana tauricornis is not just for Halloween anymore, but perfect for Valentine’s Day too!