Spider Identification

[Luremaker]

Can anyone identify this spider? I noticed it this evening in my pumpkin patch. I did a quick check and could not find in my field guide. It's overall length from top to bottom is around 1-5/8 inches. It is rather larger for these parts. Should I leave it be or dispatch it? I do like spiders because eat lots of cucumber beetles which have infested my patch this year.

 

[Inspector507]

Commonly called a Golden Orb Weaver. Harmless and beneficial.

Argiope aurantia

 

[wushaw]

Yes that is a good one to keep around.
They will shake their web if you get close, I guess it's to let you know they are there and leave them alone they are waiting on lunch...it's kinda funny.

 

[Luremaker]

Thanks guys. It's good to know it's harmless to humans. I'll move the egg sacs before I go for the pumpkins. First time I've ever seen one of these around.

Argiope aurantia - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Soundguy]

We call em banana spiders here in fl.

soundguy

 

[Flatheadyoungin]

huh! well how come it hurts me just to look at him?

Harmless and beneficial.

Argiope aurantia

 

[Soundguy]

I have 'heard' that it can raise a whelp ( slight pain, went away in a reasonable amount of time.. ) on a human, as reported to me by a reputable person so bitten by one.. however.. as with anything... he may have been especially alergic, and that may not have been a typical response.

soundguy

 

[3RRL]

I have 'heard' that it can raise a whelp ( slight pain, went away in a reasonable amount of time.. ) on a human, as reported to me by a reputable person so bitten by one.. however.. as with anything... he may have been especially alergic, and that may not have been a typical response.

soundguy

You know, sounds crazy but I've always wondered about spiders and other bugs biting humans.
We are just enormously huge compared to them.
It would be like us taking a bite out of the Earth or something like that?

 

[Soundguy]

unfortunately int he animal and insect world...I've not seen size size of 'prey' as a deterent to being attacked.. look at ants.. we are huge compaire dto them.. yet they sting like madmen!

soundguy

 

[Tig]

enature.com is great for looking up bugs, birds and spiders.
Use the adanced search option and you can descibe what you saw.

 

[ultrarunner]

Digging out an old stump yesterday with the backhoe I came across the biggest Black Widow spider I have seen... about the size of 50 cent piece...

Online I read the venom is more potent than rattle snake or cobra venom... ounce for ounce.

 

[3RRL]

Yeah, if you could get an ounce of Black Widow venom you could sell it for a gazzilion bucks, I'm sure.

 

[Soundguy]

Time to make a BW press I see!

soundguy

 

[SPIKER]

We have a lot of the big black & yellow spiders like that & call them garden spiders, & are great at eating any bug going... love grass hoppers & flys & jap beetles! nice to have them in the garden as pest control. this also reminds me of my days back in military 20 years ago almost now...

First week I was out in High Desert of California @ Edwards AFB. During check in they give you a good warning about the deadly critters crawling around the area. Well I was there about a month in a tempory room sharing it with a guy I worked with waiting for a room to open up... I did a lot of walking about in the sands & area but only saw a few things to wory about... anyhow I got me a new room late, my room (which was ground floor on the last barracks furthest out into the wild landscape.) I was handed a key on Friday about 430 pm to the room, so I took my little BBQ & set it outside the door & made me a nice steak on it for dinner. (didn't eat at the dining hall much) while I was done I took the lid & set it down beside the BBQ for evening while I continued moving my stuff from a temporary room around the corner. Well the last guy left a bunch of stuff in the room. I opened up the bottom drawer & saw the sweaters didn't think much about it just kept getting other stuff into the room set up stuff I needed. Coyotes were howling pretty good that night too so I decided to finish cleaning the room in prep for moving more stuff in in the AM. this was about 10 pm I was getting tired, went out picked up the BBQ lid and 2 scorpions dropped out onto my foot dang near. Now that spooked me pretty good, (I had already got a black widow spider out of the window & put her into a wine jug that was left in the room too.) I opened up that drawer and reached in grabbed the sweaters, only to have something (it was kind of dark in there) jump onto the back of my hand! OK that was all I needed to jump back & let out a scream that would have thrilled any little girl around ! lol turned out it was a dang gecko but after 2 scorpions a black widow and a small snake earlier I guess I was at my wits end... luckily I was by myself so I didn't have to face down any of my buddies then lol...

I put the black widow into a large empty wine bottle (not mine but was a gallon jug type) I had that spider as a pet for the hole 2 years I lived there! fed her any & every fly that came into the room the occasional ant & any other little odd bug that got into that room as the door had a 1/2" gap under it.... when I left I took her out into the wild scrub about 1/2 mile & found a nice patch of weed/bush scrub & put her there she was about size of a big marble in body and legs easily spread to 50 cent piece...



Mark

 

[4720 OWNER]

Ii have heard they are called garden spiders as well and first showed up a few years ago here. Flashy and scary, but a good thing!! Leave it be and enjoy!!

 

[LBrown59]

Can anyone identify this spider?
.

These are very common here in Ohio ; in fact i just saw one the other day.

 

[Flatheadyoungin]

yeah, you guys just keep telling us how "great" they are........wait until you're riding lead man in the trails with your atv.........and you FEEL that "helpful" little guy run across your forehead!!!