Arachnids of North Carolina
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Common Spiders of NC
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Comments
Order:
Araneae - Spiders
Opiliones - Harvestmen
Pseudoscorpiones - Pseudoscorpions
Scorpiones - Scorpions
Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Family (Alpha):
ACROPSOPILIONIDAE-
AGELENIDAE-Funnel Weavers
AMAUROBIIDAE-Hacklemesh Weavers
ANTRODIAETIDAE-Folding Trapdoor Spiders
ANYPHAENIDAE-Ghost Spiders
ARANEIDAE-Orb Weavers
ATYPIDAE-Purseweb Spiders
BUTHIDAE-
CADDIDAE-
CHEIRACANTHIIDAE-
CHEIRIDIIDAE-
CHELIFERIDAE-
CHERNETIDAE-
CHTHONIIDAE-
CICURINIDAE-
CLUBIONIDAE-Sac Spiders
CORINNIDAE-Antmimics and Ground Sac Spiders
COSMETIDAE-Armoured harvestmen
CTENIDAE-Wandering Spiders
CYBAEIDAE-
DEINOPIDAE-Ogrefaced spider
DESIDAE-
DICTYNIDAE-Mesh Web Weavers
DYSDERIDAE-
EUCTENIZIDAE-Wafer-lid Trapdoor Spiders
FILISTATIDAE-
GARYPINIDAE-
GNAPHOSIDAE-Ground Spiders
HAHNIIDAE-
HALONOPROCTIDAE-
HYPOCHILIDAE-
LARCIDAE-
LEPTONETIDAE-
LINYPHIIDAE-Sheetweb and Dwarf Spiders
LIOCRANIDAE-Liocranid Sac Spiders
LYCOSIDAE-Wolf Spiders
MICROHEXURIDAE-
MIMETIDAE-Pirate spiders
MYSMENIDAE-
NEOBISIIDAE-
NEPHILIDAE-
NESTICIDAE-Scaffold Web Spiders
OECOBIIDAE-Wall spiders
OONOPIDAE-
OXYOPIDAE-Lynx Spiders
PHALANGIIDAE-
PHALANGODIDAE-Armoured harvestmen
PHILODROMIDAE-Running Crab Spiders
PHOLCIDAE-
PHONOGNATHIDAE-
PHRUROLITHIDAE-
PISAURIDAE-Nursery Web Spiders
SABACONIDAE-
SALTICIDAE-Jumping Spiders
SCLEROSOMATIDAE-
SCYTODIDAE-
SEGESTRIIDAE-
SICARIIDAE-
SPARASSIDAE-Giant Crab Spiders
STERNOPHORIDAE-
TARACIDAE-
TETRAGNATHIDAE-Long-jawed Orb Weavers
THERIDIIDAE-Cobweb Spiders
THERIDIOSOMATIDAE-Ray Spiders
THOMISIDAE-Crab Spiders
TITANOECIDAE-
TRACHELIDAE-
TRIAENONYCHIDAE-Armoured harvestmen
TRIDENCHTHONIIDAE-
ULOBORIDAE-Cribellate Orb Weavers
VAEJOVIDAE-
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Araneidae Members:
Acacesia hamata
Acanthepeira cherokee
Acanthepeira marion
Acanthepeira stellata
Araneus alboventris
Araneus bicentenarius
Araneus bivittatus
Araneus bonsallae
Araneus cingulatus
Araneus gadus
Araneus guttulatus
Araneus iviei
Araneus juniperi
Araneus marmoreus
Araneus miniatus
Araneus niveus
Araneus nordmanni
Araneus partitus
Araneus pegnia
Araneus pratensis
Araneus saevus
Araneus thaddeus
Araneus trifolium
Araneus tuscarora
Araneus unidentified species
Araniella displicata
Argiope aurantia
Argiope florida
Argiope trifasciata
Cyclosa caroli
Cyclosa conica
Cyclosa turbinata
Eriophora ravilla
Eustala anastera
Eustala cepina
Eustala emertoni
Gasteracantha cancriformis
Gea heptagon
Hypsosinga funebris
Hypsosinga rubens
Larinia directa
Larinioides cornutus
Larinioides patagiatus
Larinioides sclopetarius
Mangora gibberosa
Mangora maculata
Mangora placida
Mangora spiculata
Mastophora bisaccata
Mastophora phrynosoma
Mastophora stowei
Mastophora timuqua
Mecynogea lemniscata
Metazygia calix
Metazygia carolinalis
Metazygia wittfeldae
Metepeira labyrinthea
Micrathena gracilis
Micrathena mitrata
Micrathena sagittata
Neoscona arabesca
Neoscona crucifera
Neoscona domiciliorum
Neoscona pratensis
Ocrepeira ectypa
Ocrepeira georgia
Singa keyserlingi
Verrucosa arenata
NC
Records
Argiope aurantia
- yellow garden spider
Taxonomy
Order:
ARANEAE
Infraorder:
Araneomorphae
Family:
Araneidae
Comments:
The genus name Argiope means "silver-face", while the specific epithet aurantia means "gilded"
Species Comment:
This widely distributed and easily noticed spider has acquired many colloquial names, including: banded garden spider, writing spider, black-and-yellow argiope, black and yellow garden spider, yellow garden orbweaver, corn spider, black & yellow argiope, zipper spider, McKinley spider, banana spider, Steeler spider, and, in California, the golden orbweaver.
Identification
Online Description/Photos:
BugGuide
Google
,
iNaturalist
,
Wikipedia
,
GBIF
Technical Description:
Spiders of North America - Bradley; Spiders of the Carolinas – Gaddy; Bugguide
Comments:
Abdomen long oval, with series of yellowish or pale spots on a black abdomen. The cephalothorax is covered with reflective white hairs. The legs have femora that are pale orange at the base and darker, often black at the tips. There are two humps at the front of the abdomen that may be inconspicuous if well-fed females. Some growing females with thin abdomens are paler. On the underside of the abdomen there are two light lines with a dark area in the center that has four to six small white spots. Juvenile females are silver. The males are tiny and usually pale or orange.
Total Length:
Large Spider, Female total body length 14-25mm, Male total body length 5-6 mm.
Adult ID:
identifiable by photo
Distribution in North Carolina
Comments:
Widespread throughout North Carolina and the entire United States.
County Map:
Clicking on a county returns the records for the species in that county.
Adult phenology:
High Mountains (HM) ≥ 4,000 ft.
Low Mountains (LM) < 4,000 ft.
Piedmont (Pd)
Coastal Plain (CP)
Click on graph to enlarge
Habitats and Life History
Habitats:
garden areas, old field, marshes, wetlands, bogs, lake and pond edges, roadside ditches, human habitations.
Observation Methods:
Visual observation.
Abundance/Frequency:
Common
Silk / Web:
Large orb web up to two feet in diameter, in low bushes or shrubs, with zig zag stabilimentum in center.
Prey:
Small to large flying insects including flies, moths, mosquitoes, beetles and katydids.
Predators:
The large egg sacs can be parasitized by wasps.
Behavior:
Diurnal. The legs are held in pairs in web, web of adult females have a conspicuous vertical zigzag stabilimentum extending above and below the hub where the spider rests. Young females build a wider platform of stabilimentum, sometimes circular in shape. Egg sacs laid in summer are large, round and made of brown silk, can be parasitized by wasps. Prey items include medium to large flying insects such as flies, bees, grasshoppers, cicadas, katydids, butterflies and beetles. Visual surveys. In a nightly ritual, the spider consumes the circular interior part of the web and then rebuilds it each morning with fresh new silk. The radial framework and anchoring lines are not usually replaced when the spider rebuilds the web. The spider may be recycling the chemicals used in web building. Additionally, the fine threads that she consumes appear to have tiny particles of what may be minuscule insects and organic matter that may contain nutrition. Argiope spiders are not aggressive. They might bite if grabbed, but other than for defense they do not attack large animals. Their venom often contains a library of polyamine toxins with potential as therapeutic medicinal agents. Notable among these is the argiotoxin ArgTX-636. A bite by Argiope aurantia is comparable to a bee sting with redness and swelling. For a healthy adult, a bite is not considered an issue. Though they are not aggressive spiders, the very young, elderly, and those with compromised immune systems should exercise caution, just as they would around a beehive or a hornet nest.
Yellow garden spiders breed twice a year. The males roam in search of a female, building a small web near or actually in the female's web, then court the females by plucking strands on her web. Often, when the male approaches the female, he has a safety drop line ready, in case she attacks him. The male uses the palpal bulbs on his pedipalps to transfer sperm to the female. After inserting the second palpal bulb, the male dies, and is sometimes then eaten by the female. She lays her eggs at night on a sheet of silky material, then covers them with another layer of silk, then a protective brownish silk. She then uses her legs to form the sheet into a ball with an upturned neck. Egg sacs range from 5/8" to 1" in diameter. She often suspends the egg sac right on her web, near the center where she spends most of her time. Each spider produces from one to four sacs with perhaps over a thousand eggs inside each. She guards the eggs against predation as long as she is able. However, as the weather cools, she becomes more frail, and dies around the time of the first hard frost. In the spring, the young spiders exit the sac. They are so tiny that they look like dust gathered inside the silk mesh. Some of the spiderlings remain nearby, but others exude a strand of silk that gets caught by the breeze, carrying the spiderling to a more distant area. Females can oscillate her web vigorously while she remains firmly attached in the center. This action might prevent predators like wasps and birds from drawing a good bead, and also to fully entangle an insect before it cuts itself loose. Recent studies have shown that the stabilimentum silk holds and traps ultraviolet light and can essentially draw insect prey in like a bug zapper. Web size can be as large as two feet in diameter.
Status in North Carolina
Natural Heritage Program Status:
Natural Heritage Program Ranks:
State Protection:
Comments:
Photo Gallery for
Argiope aurantia
- yellow garden spider
109 photos are available. Only the most recent 30 are shown.
Recorded by: Michael P. Morales on 2023-10-10
Cumberland Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-09-28
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2023-09-28
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: J. Stark on 2023-09-23
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Sophia Zamora-Katona on 2023-09-07
Chatham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: M. McKenney on 2023-08-23
Stokes Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Brian Bockhahn on 2023-07-27
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Brian Bockhahn on 2023-07-14
Hyde Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Brian Bockhahn on 2023-07-14
Hyde Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: K. Bischof on 2023-07-12
Transylvania Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Carol Ann McCormick on 2022-10-16
Alamance Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Carol Ann McCormick on 2022-10-16
Alamance Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Peifer on 2022-09-25
Lee Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: R. Newman on 2022-09-14
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Ken Kneidel on 2022-09-14
Mecklenburg Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: T. Lee on 2022-08-31
Watauga Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: T. Lee on 2022-08-31
Watauga Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Terrell Tucker on 2022-08-22
Moore Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: David George on 2022-08-22
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Donald Zepp on 2022-08-06
Johnston Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Erich Hofmann and Kayla Weinfurther on 2022-06-10
New Hanover Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2021-10-12
Brunswick Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Michael P. Morales on 2021-10-01
Beaufort Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: R. Newman on 2021-09-18
Carteret Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: H. Quay on 2021-08-20
Orange Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Brian Bockhahn on 2021-08-19
Rockingham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Erich Hofmann and Kayla Weinfurther on 2020-11-06
Bladen Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Mark Basinger on 2020-10-10
Wilson Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Simpson Eason on 2020-10-03
Durham Co.
Comment:
Recorded by: Donald B. ZEPP on 2020-10-03
Johnston Co.
Comment:
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