Golden Orb Weaver?
Location: northern Illinois
January 21, 2011 12:17 pm
Hello BugMan,
Long time fan of the site. I photographed this spider in northern Illinois over the 2009 summer. She would get agitated if I got too close to her web and start wobbling back and forth and shaking her web. I think it is a Golden Orb Weaver but would like your confirmation, as it doesn’t look exactly like any of the ones listed on your site..i.e. it’s pretty fat and oval shaped, and has a striped pattern on the legs. Thanks!
Signature: Amy in Illinois
Banded Orbweaver
Hi Amy,
This is a Banded Orbweaver, Argiope trifasciata, not a Golden Orbweaver, but your error is quite understandable since they are in the same genus and share many similarities.
Excellent! She was a beauty, and of course we just observed and left her to her business. Exact location was Stillman Valley, Illinois. Thank you very much as I know you’re very busy!!!
Appreciatively,
Amy Berogan
Spider and Young
Location: Perth, Western Australia
January 22, 2011 5:09 am
Hi,
I found this spider and her young in a messy web in the branches of a small gum tree in my garden. I am curious to know what type they are. Photo taken 20/01/11.
Many thanks
Signature: Tanya Bennett
Cobweb Spider
Hi Tanya,
We really love your photograph, which we believe shows a Cobweb Spider or Comb Footed Spider in the family Theridiidae with her brood. The family includes the notoriously venomous Red Back Spider in Australia and Black Widow in North America, but most of the members in the family are quite benign. It appears that the Spiderlings in your photo are taking advantage of feeding off of a Fly that has become ensnared in their mother’s web. We were unable to conclusively match your Spider to any of the Comb Footed Spiders on the Brisbane Spider website.
Hi Daniel,
Many thanks for your quick response, very interesting to find out what the spider is, she is still in her curled up leaf with her babies today.
Kind regards
Tanya
The Grasshopper and the spider
Location: Healesville, Victoria Australia
January 21, 2011 3:55 pm
I had this cute little drama played out the other day and thought you might like to see. I tiny spider annoying a big grasshopper, I dont know what kind. Several times it swiped the spider off and each time the spider crawled back up by its web. Eventually the grasshopper lowered it down and they went their separate ways.
Signature: Linda in Healesville Australia
Unknown Grasshopper interacts with Spiderling
Hi Linda,
Your photo is quite amusing, however, we are having a difficult time trying to identify this somewhat distinctive Grasshopper. We cannot find a match on the Brisbane Insect website nor on the LifeUnseen website. The spider, which we believe may be a newly hatched spiderling, is well beyond our ability to identify, however, we do have a theory to explain the activity you witnessed. Newly hatched spiderlings often disperse by ballooning on the wind. They will climb to a high point and release a strand of silk that catches the wind and then carries the spiderling to a distant location, hopefully one that will result in a rich food supply. This will ensure that the young spiderling will not have to compete with siblings to survive. We believe the spiderling in your photo has mistaken the Grasshopper’s antenna for a twig and that is the highest elevation point it is able to reach at the moment the photo was taken. Perhaps one of our readers will be able to assist in the Grasshopper identification.
Unknown Grasshopper with Spiderling Hitchhiker
Huntsman got hunted
Location: North Burnett. Queensland. AU.
January 20, 2011 11:33 pm
Hi guys,
Here are some shots of a Huntsman that had the tables turned by a Spider Hunter Wasp. She has dragged it back to her burrow and is taking it inside for later.
Signature: aussietrev
Spider Wasp paralyzes Huntsman Spider
Hi Trevor,
Thanks so much for sending us this wonderful documentation of an Australia Spider Wasp paralyzing a large Huntsman Spider. We found some information on the Brisbane Insect Website indicating that this is a Spider Wasp in the genus Fabriogenia. It is also important to note that while this is being filed under Food Chain, the female Spider Wasp feeds on nectar and pollen and that the Huntsman Spider will provide nourishment for her brood.
Black-and-Yellow (St. Andrews Cross) spider egg sacs
Location: San Antonio, TX
January 19, 2011 3:38 pm
No ID needed. I know what these are, thanks to your site a few years back, but I had to attach a photo to get the query to SEND. I am requesting some info, now, though. — I collected several ”jar” egg sacs which were made by some very big and beautiful Black-and-Yellow spiders. The exterminator was gong to blast them (the sacs; the mothers have already passed on with the weather). They were in Floresville, TX, and are now clothes-pinned to my patio plants here in San Antonio. I’d really like to know how to protect them and keep the babies inside safe over winter and have them come out in the Spring and populate my yard. What will they need to survive? I understand the babies hang around the ”jar” for the first few days, then disperse. Would it be good to house them in some kind of spider nursery (if so, please could you suggest something)? Is dangling and moving in the wind going to disturb the babies? The ”jars” w ere securely stitched into immobility under the eaves at the ranchhouse where the mother spiders put them. Would very much appreciate any and all info you can offer. — LOVE your site. Thank you for all the good you do for insects, bugs, and all.
Signature: sooz in San Antonio
Golden Orbweaver
Dear sooz,
We are very happy you attached an image. First, we would much rather post a letter with an image than without one, and second, you have misidentified your spider. The St. Andrew’s Cross Spider, Argiope keyserlingii, to the best of our knowledge, has not been found in North America. It is an Australian species that has a unique X shaped stabilimentum, the zigzag pattern that is woven into the web. You can see images of the spider and its stabilimentum on the Brisbane Insect website. Your spider is in the same genus, so the mistake is understandable. Your spider is a Golden Orbweaver, Argiope aurantia, and its stabilimentum is different. You can see images in our archives and on BugGuide. You should keep the eggsacs in a protected location away from the wind and predators like birds, but make sure that they are kept at approximately the outside temperature. Perhaps a paper bag or a cardboard box left open in a sheltered area of the patio or unheated garage would suffice.
THANK YOU! And I’m glad to have their correct name. One last question (OK, two): What can I expect when the babies emerge? And when should I expect them? — Thanks again!
When the spiderlings emerge in the spring, you can expect a crawling mass that will soon seek higher ground. The spiderlings will then each release a strand of silk to catch the wind and they will begin to balloon away. This is how they disperse, ensuring that the entire brood does not remain in a single location competing with one another for the food supply. The wind is actually capable of carrying the young spiderlings a considerable distance.
Quarter size black spider that looks like a Tarantula
Location: Kasane, Botswana
January 14, 2011 6:10 pm
I found a Quarter size black spider that looks like a Tarantula. My issue is that it is right by my potted plants and I don’t know if it is venomous. I love spiders but I live in the middle of know where and would not be able to seek medical attention if neccessary. Thank you.
Signature: Laura Marchitto Massie
Unknown Spider
Hi Laura,
This is a True Spider in the infraorder Araneomorphae rather than a Tarantula in the infraorder Mygalomorphae, but we do not recognize it. Those appendages at the tip of the abdomen are quite unusual and they should aid in the identification. We are posting your email and images and we hope to be able to provide you with an ID in the near future.
Unknown Spider
Large spider in Yangmingshan National Park, Taiwan
Location: Yangmingshan National Park, Taiwan
January 17, 2011 1:14 am
Saw this large spider alongside a mountain road in northern Taiwan. Did quite a bit of searching, but my google-fu is not up to the task.
Signature: Las
Orbweaver
Dear Las,
This is a Golden Silk Spider in the genus Nephila, however we are uncertain of the exact species. Nephila pilipes is documented in Taiwan, however, the marking are different in the images that are posted online. The silk spun by the Golden Silk Spiders is quite strong, and there are numerous reports of Golden Silk Spiders snaring and feeding upon small birds that get entangled in the webs made of golden silk.
Correction
2011/01/17 at 11:04 pm
I searched the web in Chinese and found this picture to be a good match. The linked picture is an adult female of Argiope ocula (眼點金蛛 in Chinese, or Eye-spotted Golden Spider, translated literally):
http://www.flickr.com/photos/spideryang/2863674849/
Adult male and immature of this species have very different color pattern in the abdomen.
tan2
Thanks for the correction. We wish we could verify this on a reputable website.
Spider I between front door and glass door
Location: Gloucester, Virginia
January 14, 2011 12:43 am
I have never seen a spider like this before, nor have I since taking this picture. I took it with my cell phone so its not the best in the world but you can get the idea. It was whitish with a dark maybe black line all the way down its body. It was pretty big also.
Signature: Sleeps
Nursery Web Spider
Dear Sleeps,
This gorgeous spider is Pisaurina mira, a harmless Nursery Web Spider, and by the looks of her full body, she is ready to lay eggs. A Nursery Web Spider constructs a nursery web for the eggs and spiderlings and fiercely guard her brood.
I am glad I caught her and released her in the woods then. I normally kill spiders that get inside the house but this one looked different so I decided to let it go.
Thank you for your thoughtfulness. She is much better off in the woods where she can protect her brood.
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