| Author | Content |
dignbloom
Greenfield, IN (Zone 5b)
August 10, 2001 5:35 PM Post #10509
| It was in my backyard (in central Indiana). With the bright yellow on it's back, I was wondering if it was poisonous? 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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Zanymuse
Scotia, CA (Zone 9b)
August 10, 2001 6:03 PM Post #108624
| I have them here too! They are kinda pretty in a big scary kid of way! I just think on them as garden spiders, I guess any spider bite is poisonous to some extent but these are actually pretty harmless. They make some pretty tough webs and like to hang out on cool mornings. I never kill these but I do knock down their webs when they insist on building across the gateways and paths. They will usually rebuild it several times befor they get the message and move to a less traveled place! I have had to brush them off me a few times when I ran into their webs but never had one bite me. |
dignbloom
Greenfield, IN (Zone 5b)
August 10, 2001 6:09 PM Post #108629
| Oh my! I don't think I could handle one of these on me! I killed this one, just because it was big & I need to get in that corner & clear out the weeds! I usually leave spiders alone outside. Julie |
Zanymuse
Scotia, CA (Zone 9b)
August 10, 2001 6:14 PM Post #108630
| LOL Julie! Don't let their size intimadate you! Next time just break the web up. The Spider will hide from you for awhile so you can work the area and will come back out and rebuild later. I like that they catck large flying things like grasshoppers that can destroy my gardens! |
poppysue
Westbrook, ME (Zone 5a)
 August 10, 2001 6:22 PM Post #108637
| That's a Garden Spider - Black & Yellow Argiope. They're a gardener's friend ;o) |
perLite
Petaluma, CA
August 10, 2001 6:23 PM Post #108638
| A few years back, this kind of spider was featured on the cover of Organic Gardening. I'd love to have one in my garden (maybe 2 or 3) but having one actually on me would startle me into the next county! They eat lots & lots of pests. I'd follow Zany's advice on them. And they are nice to look at. |
Larkie
Camilla, GA (Zone 8a)
August 11, 2001 12:27 AM Post #108780
| Poppysue is right. This is the "Argiope Aurantia" or Orb Weaver spider..They make amazing web's..I have one in my back yard that is about 6 ft across.. Beautiful..They will take care of your garden pest..
Larkie
http://members.nbci.com/nicksspiders/argiopeaurantia.htm |
puttyrat
Powhatan, VA (Zone 6b)
August 11, 2001 12:42 AM Post #108787
| The young will overwinter in a large pear-shaped sack. A neat spider to say the least.
puttyrat =^..^= |
poppysue
Westbrook, ME (Zone 5a)
August 11, 2001 12:51 AM Post #108791
| Larkie - A 6-foot spider would scare the begeezus out a me!! |
Zanymuse
Scotia, CA (Zone 9b)
August 11, 2001 5:41 AM Post #108848
| LOL Poppysue! I snorted coffee through my nose on that one! |
dignbloom
Greenfield, IN (Zone 5b)
August 11, 2001 2:10 PM Post #108939
| LOL Poppysue & Zany! Now I feel bad for killing the darn thing! I was pretty. I will not kill anymore if I find them. I also found a Brown Recluse yesterday & happily killed that one - they seem to find their way into the house and I know how bad their bite can be! Julie |
Zanymuse
Scotia, CA (Zone 9b)
August 11, 2001 7:57 PM Post #109052
| Brown recluse are bad news! Now that is one I can kill gladly along with the black widows!~ |
Larkie
Camilla, GA (Zone 8a)
August 12, 2001 3:04 AM Post #109209
| LOL..The Web, Poppysue..Guess I should be more specific? Gave me a good laugh, although here in the south GA woods, 6ft., might not be too far off base..LOL
Larkie |
wooconley
Oak Hill, OH (Zone 6a)
August 21, 2006 9:34 PM Post #2645378
| Argiope aurantia
http://www.arachnology.org/Arachnology/Pages/Orbweb.html
Also known as St Andrew's Cross spider. Last fall my hubby and I were walking in the woods and saw maybe 40-50 different webs with a spider in each center. The webs were huge! At least 4-5 feet across. Fortunately they were all about 10 feet or so off the ground spun between pine trees. The sun was just right (early evening) so the webs were very visible - and beautiful.
Have to admit it was kind of freaky walking under some of them even though I knew they were harmless - they are very big spiders.
I was just sorry I didn't have a camera with me! |
Cottage_Rose
(Zone 5b)
August 24, 2006 2:35 AM Post #2653562
| I was just going to post my pic to have it ID'ed
Creeps me out to know they are out there were I go poking around weeding and stuff!
Note the zig zag weave in the web!
This message was edited Aug 23, 2006 10:37 PM
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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melody
Benton, KY (Zone 7a)
 August 25, 2006 5:50 PM Post #2658541
| Also known as Writing Spiders or Scribblers...and is thought to be the spider that the children's book, Charlotte's Web was written about. |
claypa
West Pottsgrove, PA (Zone 6b)
August 25, 2006 5:55 PM Post #2658556
| I thought Charlotte was a Garden Spider, Araneus diadematus ? |
Niere
Chepachet, RI (Zone 5b)
August 25, 2006 7:15 PM Post #2658820
| From "Charlotte's Web"--Charlotte refers to herself as "Charlotte A. Cavatica," and from this one can assume that the author means to identify Charlotte as an "Auraneus Cavaticus" or a barn spider--which would make sense, because Charlotte does after all live in a barn.
The only reason I know this is because I had a beautiful golden garden spider in my tomato patch and as I was looking this up I stumbled upon this information.
It's too bad--I think Argiope aurantia is much prettier. :) |
claypa
West Pottsgrove, PA (Zone 6b)
August 25, 2006 7:40 PM Post #2658887
| Niere, thanks for clearing that up! I always wondered about that, not having read the book in maybe thirty+ years... |
Niere
Chepachet, RI (Zone 5b)
August 26, 2006 12:18 AM Post #2659742
| No problem claypa. :D Hey--next time you drive past King Street, give it a wave--I used to work in a building on King Street in Pottstown back in the day! |
White_Hydrangea
Aurora, CO (Zone 5a)
August 26, 2006 3:47 AM Post #2660452
| When I was little we used to have these huge black and yellow spiders that would make enormous webs across our gardens. We called them banana spiders (don't know why), and they're probably in large part responsible for my arachnophobia.
Call an exterminator for the brown recluse! Don't mess around with them! Recluse bad juju! |
Terry
Murfreesboro, TN (Zone 7a)
August 26, 2006 7:17 PM Post #2661931
| I'm glad to know what they are. We have some that build webs near our big pond each year. As long as they don't build them where I run into them when I walk out there, we co-exist quite peacefully. (I figure they're taking advantage of the built-in insect buffet, and helping me out by keeping my skeeter/gnat population down. |
bdws1975
Oklahoma City, OK
September 3, 2006 2:41 PM Post #2687247
| It PAINS me to hear about some of you people are killing these friendly spiders. You should feel BLESSED and PROUD that a gentle Argiope chose to make its home in your garden. My wife and I have fallen in love with the big, beautiful female who settled outside our front window. In a short three months she has become a part of our family and a helpful friend in ridding our garden of pests.
Please do your research. There are only a FEW select spiders that are any harm to you or your family. Before killing these helpful friends remember that every time you gripe about pesty bugs, weevils, etc. you will contribute to their presence by killing a spider.
This message was edited Sep 3, 2006 8:07 PM |
DreamOfSpring
Charleston, SC (Zone 8b)
September 4, 2006 2:33 AM Post #2689026
| There are 3 dozen or more of these spiders in my backyard cottage garden, huge ones. By this time of year they have covered almost every inch of spider real estate. They love to make their webs across my garden paths so I have to be very careful when walking in the garden this time of year. One thing I've noticed though is that they "learn" very fast. When they string webs across my paths, I gently break one side of the web so that the web and spider fall to the other side. I only have to do this once, maybe twice, before the spider will learn to orient its web so that it does not cross the path. |
wooconley
Oak Hill, OH (Zone 6a)
September 4, 2006 6:55 PM Post #2690819
| Although I saw so many in the woods last fall, I've only had one of these beautiful spiders around my house. I'd love to have more! Is there anything I can do to attract them? |
DreamOfSpring
Charleston, SC (Zone 8b)
September 4, 2006 8:52 PM Post #2691106
| I'm just guessing here. I have so many that they border on problematic due to the ick factor of seeing multiple spiders at every turn and of having to walk with one hand out front just in case. I'd say the proliferation of them in my garden is probably due to the combination of lots of plants (and very little grass) with few if any chemical controls. I don't rush out with the chemicals at the 1st sign of insects. (This is partly intentional and partly due to recent health issues.) As a result the garden is full of argiope spiders as well as lady bugs, praying mantis, tons of butterflies, bees, and a plethera of dragon flies. In the end they seem to keep the bad guys in check pretty well.
With so very many spiders, they do trap the occaisional butterfly or dragonfly; but they also eat a lot of "bad" bugs, and there are still plenty of butterflies left. Last summer I found a bunch of pine sawfly larvae eating the foliage on a tree branch. I was just trying to decide if I should try to drag the hose back there when I noticed a number of argiope spiders (a slightly different variety) building webs that all terminated on the effected branch. Research on the spider showed that it was one of the few creatures that would eat the larvae. Within a few days the larvae were gone. I thought that was pretty cool.
Anyhow, I figure you need lots of plants to attact insects for food and to provide attractive places for webs, and you need to be willing to keep the chemicals to a bare minimum. I haven't used anything more powerful than neem in years; frankly, I can't recall when I last used neem. Also, by the end of summer, my cottage garden with its 1000+ plants has usually gotten completely out of hand. I'm not recommending that, but it probably does make the place attractive to the spiders. (Maybe let one corner get a little "wild".) |
Sarahskeeper
Brockton, MA (Zone 6a)
September 6, 2006 2:24 AM Post #2695848
| Scutler, My flower gardens get a little 'wild' this time of year, too. Preditors like 'wild'.
I started a thread in Wildlife a few weeks ago about my Argiope. She died last week.
There are a few pics in the thread, especially the posts of Sept. 2nd.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/641426/
Andy P |
makshi
Noblesville, IN (Zone 5a)
 September 6, 2006 7:29 PM Post #2697745
| Here is the picture of mine. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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makshi
Noblesville, IN (Zone 5a)
September 6, 2006 7:32 PM Post #2697755
| Andy,
Why did she die? |
Sarahskeeper
Brockton, MA (Zone 6a)
September 6, 2006 8:13 PM Post #2697881
| Makshi, I think that's the way it works. Her job was done.
Our entire area was sprayed for mosquitoes a few weeks ago, that may have hastened her death, too.
Andy P |
tropicalkaren
The Villages, FL (Zone 9a)
September 7, 2006 2:14 AM Post #2698901
| I had an argiope in my front yard. She spun the most beautiful web, with what really looked like a ladder in the center. The "ladder" was much thicker web than the rest and appeared very white. My spider book says that it is called a "stabilamentum" and it serves to camouflage the young spider. Whatever it is, it is magnificent!! Karen |
AuntB
NE, KS (Zone 5b)
September 7, 2006 4:30 PM Post #2700467
| What an interesting thread, and about spiders! We call them ladder spiders. My Mom & I were discussing "mine" over the weekend... I have "encouraged" this one to stay to the back of the planter.. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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AuntB
NE, KS (Zone 5b)
September 7, 2006 4:31 PM Post #2700476
| Lunch- same spider - different view 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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Sarahskeeper
Brockton, MA (Zone 6a)
September 7, 2006 9:39 PM Post #2701335
| I miss mine. She only caught one 'good' bug that I know of.
Andy P
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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AuntB
NE, KS (Zone 5b)
September 7, 2006 9:46 PM Post #2701350
| Awe, sorry, Andy. Now that's an all you can eat buffet table! |
Sarahskeeper
Brockton, MA (Zone 6a)
September 7, 2006 11:27 PM Post #2701647
| She didn't eat the wings. I saw them below the web the next day.
I just found an unknown smaller spider catching a large grasshopper, took some pics too. We'll see what they look like tonight.
Andy P |
wickerparker
Chicago, IL (Zone 5b)
September 18, 2006 5:00 PM Post #2735832
| Is this the same spider? markings seem different... (first time posting an image -- hope it works!)
not sure why there's no image. Could it be too big a file? I'm working on it...
This message was edited Sep 18, 2006 12:01 PM
Click the image for an enlarged view. |
wickerparker
Chicago, IL (Zone 5b)
September 18, 2006 5:05 PM Post #2735863
| trying again... 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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DreamOfSpring
Charleston, SC (Zone 8b)
September 18, 2006 6:03 PM Post #2736092
| I'm not a spider expert by any means, but I don't think so. The "abdomen" looks different. Based on the web, I'd say it is probably a type of argiope, just not the same type. Yours looks like the banded argiope: http://mamba.bio.uci.edu/~pjbryant/biodiv/spiders/Argiope tr... |
wickerparker
Chicago, IL (Zone 5b)
September 18, 2006 8:22 PM Post #2736475
| Thanks -- I'm sure you're right. I never thought I'd say this about a spider -- but I'm finding it kind of beautiful, and as it's living right outside our door, it's been fascinating (and convenient) to watch it do its thing. |
AuntB
NE, KS (Zone 5b)
September 19, 2006 1:41 PM Post #2738654
| Me, too, wicker. I HATE spiders... but these intrigue me... they are garden helpers, and I really enjoy watching them. I guess once I get past the creepy crawly legs, and a couple shivers up my back... they're kinda cool! |
Spiderexpert
Zionsville, IN
April 18, 2009 9:16 PM Post #6429078
| Yes, they are cool. I've seen a few before and I've done some reasearch on them. If you ever see one, just let it be. As poppysue said, The yellow garden spider is a gardeners friend. Bites result in mild itching and swelling for a couple days, though it is believed their bites could inject a small amount of neurotoxin as well, but they will eat any grasshopers that kill your plants.
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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Sarahskeeper
Brockton, MA (Zone 6a)
April 20, 2009 12:29 AM Post #6434292
| LOL, "friend". They make great photo subjects. I have yet to see a male in the garden. |
kfury
Kennebunkport, ME
April 20, 2009 5:30 PM Post #6437337
| I had one last year that spun a web from my appletree branch (about 6ft high) down to my daffodils! My boyfriend saw it and kept me from walking right through it...chills up my spine. Being bigger than I, left it alone. Excellent predator. |
Lette_Smokes
Grand Junction, CO
July 25, 2009 3:36 PM Post #6863347
| i have a spider in my back yard that looks like the yellow one except it is grey...it has yellow and black legs and a grey back with a white stripe...on the belly it is black and has 4 white dots...i havent killed it yet cuz its keeping the insects down...but i have a major fear of spiders and this one is BIG...i cant find one like it on the internet anywhere so i'm not sure what it is...can anyone help me identify it? please |
glidergal
Quinlan, TX
October 12, 2009 3:41 PM Post #7161177
| In Texas this is commonly called a Cotton spider because of the cottony zig zag patches incorporated into the web. My kiddos used to call it the Zig Zag spider. They are very smart...we had one years ago when my kids were little, that built a web from the roof edge to the ground items just off the front porch. (after we discouraged her from building ON the porch) When the kids got bored one day that summer, they started tossing grasshoppers and any other bug they could find into her web. She would race over and wrap it up as soon as it hit. The kids were amused by this and for a few days they would go out several times a day to "feed the spider". They lost interest, school started... and I noticed any time I walked close to the web she would get very agitated. When I didn't "feed" her she started bouncing the web like a kid on a trampoline! I tested it several days and she did it every time I came close without her "dinner" It was so funny! So I began feeding our spider every day until she spun her egg sack and later died. |
Sarahskeeper
Brockton, MA (Zone 6a)
October 12, 2009 10:49 PM Post #7162595
| Cool story, Glidergal. |
WiccanChick24
Utica, NY
June 5, 2010 12:28 PM Post #7861322
| these garden spiders..i have never seen any in my area...then of course i live in upstate NY. do they only live in warmer climate? |
suunto
Sinks Grove, WV
June 5, 2010 1:18 PM Post #7861485
| This spider has an extremely wide distribution in the Americas from southern Canada south through the lower 48 United States, Mexico, and Central America as far south as Costa Rica; it was common in North Dakota where I grew up. |
Texas_gal
Stephenville, TX
July 19, 2010 5:48 AM Post #7980064
| We have these beautiful spiders around here, which we affectionately call "Charlottes," but we do not seem to have as many as we have had in past years. Perhaps that is because we have so many mud daubers. One day I broke open a mud dauber's nest and found dozens of young garden spiders in a paralyzed state waiting to be dinner for the mud dauber's hatchlings.
Jane
This message was edited Jul 19, 2010 6:49 AM |
Texas_gal
Stephenville, TX
October 21, 2010 1:04 PM Post #8168171
| This is Charlotte. She lived in our black-eyed peas and would accept grasshoppers right from our fingers. She just died, leaving five egg cases behind, of which we were able to save four. The other was lost to fire ants. We will miss her.
We would like to keep her egg cases safe until next spring and then put them back out in the garden and hope for the best. Any tips?
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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DATURA12
Fort Worth, TX (Zone 8a)
November 3, 2010 8:36 AM Post #8192207
| In Pa. where I used to live we had Agriopes too, we called them bananna spiders. Now I live in Tx. and I see them all the time in my garden. They are always welcome..but they need to leave my butterflies alone. |
lonlyguy
Manchester, NH
April 28, 2011 8:22 PM Post #8527549
| This spider was seen at my friends house. And she would like to know what it is ...so would I ..It is in north Carolina...can u help..Identify this one 
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yovillageidiot
Dunedin, FL
April 4, 2012 10:31 AM Post #9069650
| Don't feel bad for killing it, all spiders are scary in my book, and if they are in my path they are as good as dead, harmless or not, it's a freaking spider!! no offense to yo spider lovers, but all spiders are creepy and scary to me!! |
Flapdoodle
Minot, ND
April 4, 2012 10:47 AM Post #9069665
| @lonlyguy - It is a southern house spider -
http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/urban/spiders/southern_h... |
lipglosslie
Fallon, NV (Zone 6b)
August 18, 2012 4:36 PM Post #9245955
| Nice photos in this thread. I just had to post and say how jealous I am that you have seen one of these! :) I don't know if we even have those where I live. I've never gotten to see one. I hope to one day. |
