I had a request for a spider today, so I’m not to blame if your preference is for something a bit more cuddly. This lovely lady is a Madagascar golden orb spider that I photographed while in Ranomafana National Park. Females like this one can be quite large — about five inches in length, while the males are much smaller. In fact, you can see a male above the female and a bit to the left.
Nikon D200 with Nikkor 80-200mm lens (at 200mm) ISO 200, f/3.2 at 1/45th of a second (-2/3 stop ev)