Even if you find spiders a bit creepy (which I don’t), you can’t help but admire the beauty and artistry of their webs. This spider, which I think is a Black and Yellow Garden Spider (Argiope aurantia), went a little crazy with its zigzag pattern this past weekend at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
Most of the time the webs of these spiders have a single zigzag pattern that leads to the center of the web. This spider, which seemed smaller than many of the others of this species that I have seen, for some unknown reason decided to repeat the pattern multiple times, which helped me to spot the web more easily.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

An over achiever?
In the Washington DC area that would not be surprising–we are full of people like that. So why wouldn’t the insects and arachnids follow a similar path (it’s said that pets often begin to resemble their owners). 🙂
That’s a good point.
I love all of the lines and patterns in this image. I rescued a chubby one of these spiders from my bathroom sink the other day. My oldest son was not pleased to learn that I had simply released it elsewhere in the house.
Very Nice Mike! But it is not a Dragonfly!!
Hahaha! I love the comment exchange that you and Dan had 🙂 I’ve seen the single zig-zag in photos a few times but nothing like this. Its so over-the-top that its completely wonderful! Almost makes me dizzy!
Amazing!
Mike, can I use this image in a possible soon-coming post “Woven”?
You are welcome to use the image, Liz. I am intrigued by the subject choice.
Remember Jean Mackay from Drawn In? The inspiration is from a recent post of hers; its had me plotting away over the last 24 hrs 😉
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