Spiders, spiders everywhere you look, they’re building webs, making bold appearances. Sometimes in the most unusual and unwanted places. It’s like they’re begging me to feature them. So, I’ll share my recent sightings.
Opening the back door of my car this week, I discovered a spider web inside, extending from one side to the other, and a small spider, busy at work. Orb weavers have built a web just above our hummingbird feeder at the edge of the covered deck. Yesterday, I was about to place my hand on the railing, before walking down our steps, when I saw a bright orange and yellow spider with white and black stripes on its legs, sitting on the exact spot, the wrong spot, for us both. Fortunately, I looked before I grabbed the handrail, sparing us both of a squishy, sensory overload situation.
Grabbing my phone instead, I tried to capture a few photos of the fall-colored creature. Being camera shy, it scurried all eight of its legs around the rail, and out of sight. I hurried after it, moving to the other side of the rail, and thus began our game of hide and seek. As determined as a spider, I didn’t give up until I got a few pictures.
Seeing a new-to-me orb weaver so close with its bright orange and yellow colors, I had to know the name of my new outdoor resident and fall decoration. How delightful, the spider is known as the “pumpkin spider.” It resembles a tiny pumpkin in this picture below. Its scientific name is Marbled Orb Weaver (Araneus marmoreus).
7 Facts about the Fascinating Orb Weaver Spiders
1. Spiders are not insects. Insects have six legs. Spiders are Arachnida, and have eight legs.
2. Orb weavers vary in color and are known for its large, bulging abdomens and striking, bold markings.
3. There are about 180 species of orb weavers on this continent, from Alaska to Mexico, and the Hawaiian islands.
4. Orb weavers fashion the original sticky trap, using their silk web to capture the insects they eat. Once the vibrating silk line signals that the spider has caught prey, the spider injects a paralyzing venom, preventing its escape. The spider then wraps the insect in a mummy like cocoon of silk, until it’s ready to dine.
5. Spiders eat twice its weight in insects daily, doing its part to control pesky populations of insects you don’t want in your garden or on your plants.
6. Spiders work hard and fast, keeping their insect catching webs in top shape, repairing and rebuilding damage daily.
7. Wonder why we see orb weaver spiders during late summer and fall? These spiders are year-round residents in our gardens and flowerbeds, but we notice them more this season as they’ve grown to adult size and are actively hunting and courting.
There’s so much going on outdoors, in the natural world this month. Chances are you have an orb weaver nearby, doing its part to keep bad bugs at bay. Have you ever seen a Pumpkin Spider up close?
Happy Spider and Nature Watching.
By Deborah S. Tukua, author, and freelance writer