What does this do to your "spidy senses"? YIKES.... thank heavens not in my yard (yet) this is a neighbor....

Donot send them to CANADA

It's a "garden spider"....for real. Technical name is: Argiope aurantia is a showy spider usually noticed in late summer. It has several common names: black-and-yellow argiope, black and yellow garden spider, corn spider, golden garden spider; golden orb-weaver, writing spider, yellow garden argiope, yellow garden orb-weaver, and zipper spider. The bodies of females grow to a little more than one inch long; males are much smaller. The third pair of legs is about half as long as the other legs. Males often hold the front pairs of legs close and the hind pairs of legs close together so that the silhouette resembles a St. Andrew's cross. The segment to which the legs and mouthparts attach is covered with very short, shiny, white scales. The abdomen is egg-shaped and conspicuously marked with black and yellow. Females spin orb webs (spiral sticky threads suspended on non-sticky spokes) with a conspicuous white zigzag structure in the middle called the stablementum.

1 comment

by basketkase 22 Aug 2023

Omg Jerrilyn, thank you for that info, it is wonderful to know about what little creatures we are living with....I had never seen anything like this in the "city" up north....it is a beautiful specimen as long as I see it outside and not in...lol...

I have no idea what this is but isn't it pretty! We have learned that so many insects are actually good, so we leave them alone and let our pest control guy determine what insects need to be sprayed. But it doesn't mean I'm going to get close and personal and pet them. hehe

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by basketkase 21 Aug 2023

I agree.......we have read up on lots of insects here, although I don't know what this is.......I never knew that dragonflies eat mosquitoes........We have a ton of dragonflies in the back yard and am so happy to read about their role in the insect world...

Critters thrive in Arkansas. Be glad you're a critter. We have large ones like this guy only yellow where the white is in your picture. I despise them, because they weave these really long, very elastic threads in my trees and it is not unusual for there to be more than 15 as I walk in the yard. My hair gets tangled. However, my son informs me that they devour lots of less desirable insects and therefore should be respected. Think of him/her as the trash collector, providing a service you need.

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by basketkase 21 Aug 2023

For sure, I can't bring myself to kill something I don't know about, would just hate to have this one attached to the end of a web that I walked through though😬