Garden Spiders: What to Know

Garden Spiders:

1. Appearance:

- Large, orb-weaver spiders with long legs and a distinctive zig-zag pattern on their white abdomen.

- Female garden spiders are larger than males.

2. Habitat:

- Garden spiders are found in gardens, fields, and other open areas with vegetation.

- They build their webs between trees, shrubs, and tall grass.

3. Web:

- Garden spiders weave large, circular webs with sticky silk.

- The webs are used to trap insects for food.

4. Diet:

- Garden spiders are predators and feed primarily on insects such as flies, moths, and beetles.

- They wait in the center of their webs for prey to get caught.

5. Behavior:

- Garden spiders are generally not aggressive towards humans but may bite if handled or threatened.

- The bites are usually not harmful but can be painful.

6. Lifecycle:

- Garden spiders have an annual lifecycle.

- Females lay eggs in the fall, which hatch into spiderlings in the spring.

- Spiderlings grow throughout the summer and reach maturity in the fall.

7. Beneficial:

- Garden spiders are considered beneficial insects as they help to control populations of harmful insects.

- They do not pose a significant threat to humans.

8. Common Name:

- Garden spiders are also known as orb-weaver spiders or writing spiders due to their distinctive web patterns.

9. Size:

- They are relatively large spiders with leg spans ranging from 2 to 4 inches.

10. Safety Precautions:

- If you encounter a garden spider, it is best to admire it from a distance and avoid touching or disturbing it.