Tough love for horny NT spider

An eight-legged Romeo ended up “carking it with a boner” during a spider courtship gone wrong when the “incompetent” male did a failed reverse mount that ended in murder.

This male fringed jumping spider was killed during a disastrous attempt to mate Picture: CAITLIN HENDERSON/SHE’S GOT LEGS

THIS eight-legged Romeo ended up “carking it with a boner” during a spider courtship gone wrong.

Spider photographer Caitlin Henderson said she was in Kakadu when she found a couple of fringed jumping spiders.

She said the male ended up being killed by the female during a disastrous attempt to mate in which he mounted her the wrong way round.

“I’ve never seen a male be so incompetent during mating,” she said.

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“He danced around for about an hour wooing her, docked her the wrong way and spent another hour trying to spin the right way around.

“He was seconds away from success when she finally got sick of it and killed him.

“I don’t know how to put this delicately, but he met his maker as an upstanding member of society … he carked it with a boner.”

The spider’s body was taken to the MAGNT for research.

To view more creepy crawlies Caitlin Henderson has photographed visit the She’s Got Legs Facebook page.