Well hello…
Location: Corpus Christi, TX
October 17, 2011 3:28 am
This colorful spider made a large web on the porch. I’m from Washington State visiting Corpus Christi so I’m not used to seeing spiders like this. It was pretty large and moved quickly (saw it scurrying across the deck later that day). Can you identify it? Is it venomous?
Signature: Scott
Hi Scott,
Your spider is a Silver Argiope, Argiope argentata, one of the Orbweavers. Nearly all spiders have venom, but very few spiders have venom that is considered toxic to humans. We are less and less inclined to claim, as we once did, that a species is perfectly harmless, because for most people peanuts are perfectly harmless, though there are growing numbers of children with peanut allergies. The same may hold true for spider venom, and a person with a highly allergic reaction may be in grave danger after a bite that for most people is a slight annoyance. Orbweavers are very reluctant to bite, but that does not mean they will not bite.