Georgia Backyard Nature

Yearling Yellow Garden Spiders

 

The Yellow Garden spider moved her web closer to the front porch, perhaps to snare more of the bugs that flock to the lights there. It must be working because she's bigger than ever! Today I noticed that her egg sac was nearby, nestled in the rose bush.

 

These spiders have a life cycle of only a year. Eggs are encased in a sac that resembles brown paper.  The baby spiders hatch and overwinter in the sac. They disperse in spring but are hardly noticed until they mature toward the end of summer.

 

 

Several weeks ago there were two Yellow Garden Spider webs close to one another. One web was very large and the other smaller. Then the spider in the smaller web disappeared. But that’s normal.  I learned that the male builds a small web near the female's and waits until she's ready to mate. After mating occurs, the male dies. The female dies after laying her eggs so I guess she'll disappear soon, too.

 

 

Although I usually prune the roses in February, I might have to wait until much later so I won’t disturb the babies in the middle of winter. After all, I want to watch Yellow Garden spiders again next year—through the window, of course.

Scary Spiders

This is the time of year that Yellow Garden spiders appear. They’re found in gardens across the U.S.  but are often go unnoticed until late summer and early fall when they reach maturity.  Yellow Garden Spiders spin intricate webs spiraling out from the center, sometimes reaching three feet across. The center usually has a distinctive zig-zag pattern. Webs are usually anchored by branches of shrubs in a sunny spot. This one was built between the house and a shrub. 

 

Yellow Garden Spiders hang upside down on the web waiting for prey, which may be aphids, mosquitoes, flies, or small flying insects.  They sense prey by vibration of the web. This one seems to have captured a bee. It was in the web yesterday but wrapped tightly to save for a later meal. You can see the zig-zag section of the web.

 

Today the spider unwrapped it and began its feast.

 

This one spins its web in the same spot every day, patiently waiting for a poor bug to be tangled.  Even though I don’t like spiders one bit, the Yellow Garden Spider fascinates me—as long as I can watch it through the window, that is.

Spooky Spiders

This morning I spotted a big fearsome-looking spider spinning a web near the front porch. It was an aptly named Yellow Garden Spider. Even though I don’t like spiders a bit, these black and yellow arachnids are fascinating.

 

They’re found in gardens cross the U.S.  but often go unnoticed until late summer and early fall when they reach maturity.  Yellow Garden Spiders spin intricate webs spiraling out from the center, sometimes reaching three feet across. The center usually has a distinctive zig-zag pattern. Webs are anchored by branches of shrubs in a sunny spot. This one was built between the house and a shrub.  Every night they eat their web and build a new one the next day.

 

 

 

Yellow Garden Spiders hang upside down on the web waiting for prey, which may be aphids, mosquitoes, flies, or small flying insects.  They sense prey by vibration of the web. This one didn’t have to wait too long. About an hour after I took the first pictures, two flies were ensnared. I snapped it eating one of the flies and an hour later, the web was empty.  

 

Their life cycle is only about a year.  Eggs are encased in a sac that resembles brown paper.  You can see the sac hanging on the web in the first picture above. They hatch in late autumn but the baby spiders stay in the sac through the winter and emerge in the spring. They mature toward the end of summer. After mating occurs in autumn, the male dies. The female dies after laying her eggs.

 

Their predators include some birds, wasps, and lizards. When disturbed, Yellow Garden Spiders usually hide so they’re unlikely to bite humans. If they do, though, the effect is described as similar to a bee sting.

 

Even though these spiders look scary, I’ve decided not to tear down their webs anymore. After seeing those pesky flies disappear, I have to admit they do a lot of good.

 

 

 

Click on the pictures for a better view!!