Golden Silk Spider = Banana Spider

Oh wait, Craig got some better pics as the lighting was better. Here is the best one. Look at the scary little "face" on the top of its head.



I read that these spiders are very non-aggressive and their webs are very visible because they are golden/yellow and have an area of 8-36 square feet. They are very beneficial because of all the insects they eat.

Actually, there are 2 species by the same name and the South American banana spider is aggressive and deadly. But this is North America, so we won't worry about that.

Check out these cool facts about spiders:

The spiders that weave webs use silk to do this. They make the silk out of their own bodies and jump from tree branch to tree branch to make their web. Each kind of spider makes a different kind of web. Some of the strands in the web are sticky, to catch bugs, but some are dry. The spider walks on the dry strands so she doesn’t get stuck. The spider usually waits in the center of the web, with one of her legs touching a strand. If she feels the strands jiggle, she goes to find the bug that is caught in the web. If it is just a leaf, or a really big bug that could tear up the web, the spider will cut the strands holding it, so it will fall out of the web. If she needs to rebuild a web, she will eat the broken strands and digest them. This helps her make more new silk. Nothing is wasted.

Spiders don’t chew their food. When they get to the bug in their web, they bite it and inject venom. The venom either paralyzes or kills the bug. Then the venom turns the bug’s insides into liquid. While the venom is working, the spider wraps the bug in silk. She may drink the liquid then or tie the little silk bundle to her web so she can snack later.