Four-spot orb-weaver
This colourful spider attached itself to one our volunteer’s jackets recently (October 2019). It’s called a Four-spot orb-weaver and is fairly common through-out the British Isles between June and October. Like many other invertebrates it lives in tall grasses which is why we leave some areas of the Green uncut. It also lives in hedges and shrubs. It weaves large webs to catch flies and other small insects.
Their colour can be extremely variable; they can be yellow-green, orange, red or brown. However, the four white spots on its abdomen, which give the spider its name, can usually be clearly seen. This one was probably a male, measuring around 8mm, the female can be almost twice this size. |