In Cherokee mythology, what animal brought the first fire to the people?

In Cherokee mythology, Water Spider brought the first fire to the people.

In the Cherokee origin story, the animals lived without fire after it was kept across a body of water. Several animals attempted to retrieve it, but the successful helper was the small Water Spider. She carried a coal back in a clay vessel attached to her back, allowing the people to use fire for warmth, cooking, and light.

The story is often confused with other Cherokee tales in which Rabbit, Possum, or Buzzard plays an important role. Those animals do appear in Cherokee traditions, but they are not the standard answer to the first-fire question. The Water Spider in this account is also not necessarily the mosquito-like insect modern readers may associate with the name. James Mooney recorded the first written version in the late nineteenth century, and later Cherokee explanations connect the character with a hairy, red-striped jumping spider. As with many oral traditions, details and names can vary among tellers.