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Comments & ID Thoughts
I see these guys on nearly every pole out here as well as the trees near the poles. They ball up and hang out on the web during the day and spread out around dusk. When spread they are a little over an inch and are very bright red in color. They make large webs(1-3 feet in diameter)with about 4 anchor points, one of which is very long and I've seen it sometimes span 15 feet from the top of the pole to some foliage on the bottom.The silk is also some of the thickest and strongest my face has run into, especially the large anchor web. These guys are pretty freaky to run into and I think knowing more about them would make me a little more comfortable since I'm going to be around them for most of my day. So any information is appreciated, thank you.
- Submitted by:
- Submitted: Nov 6, 2018
- Photographed: Nov 6, 2018
- Spider: Unidentified
- Location: Feyette, Alabama, United States
- Spotted Outdoors: Man-made structure (building wall, fences, etc.),Low foliage (shrubs, herbs, garden, excluding flowers),High foliage (includes trees and tree trunks),Forest
- Found in web?: Yes
- Attributes:
Anyone?
Hi, is this a different spider than your other photo? I think this one is Araneus cavaticus, a barn orbweaver. The ventral (belly) side can be various colors but the white markings remain more consistent. This is the species that the (fictional) spider in “Charlotte’s Web” is. I love your note, “the silk is also some of the thickest and strongest that my face has run into.” They are known for strong big webs. Orbweavers are docile spiders, you would really have to make an effort to get one to bite you. I don’t know if they die by frost… Read more »
Thank you very much for the comment, I realize the more I work around and observe them how much of an impact they have on the local insect population. So much so that I can accurately predict a substantial increase of mosquito bites bites based on of lack of these orbweavers in the area and it blows my mind a little bit. I think these guys will require more research on my end now that I know what species they are, but they are pretty interesting. This is a different spider from my other picture, so if I can get… Read more »