Anybody know what kind of spider this is?

I love to take photos in my flower gardens. Came across this pretty yellow creature. I know I am probably supposed to be afraid of it ,but it is amazingly beautiful. Anyone know about it? It is about three inches long and bright lemon yellow.
  22 answers
  • Nancy Turner Nancy Turner on Sep 15, 2017

    Sorry, couldn't tell you what kind of spider it is. Just wanted to agree with you that it is a beautiful spider with a really interesting web design.

  • Big lulu Big lulu on Sep 15, 2017

    Golden Garden Spider, not poisonous and interesting webs.

  • Rose Broadway Rose Broadway on Sep 15, 2017

    I found it. It says Garden Spider, so I assume it's harmless. It's a beauty, but I wouldn't want it crawling on me!

    • Sylvia Smothers Lawing Sylvia Smothers Lawing on Sep 16, 2017

      Me either. I will enjoy from a distance. I showed it to my friend and she said -kill it!! I said , "It is where it is supposed to be and doing what it was created to do, I am not going to hurt it." I am so thankful for the ability to go online and ask friends to share knowledge about our homes and gardens-and our lives. Thank you

  • Nancy Turner Nancy Turner on Sep 15, 2017

    I looked up your spider. It is an argiope-aurantia. It is known as the yellow or yellow and black garden spider. The male is 5-9 mm long and the female is 19-28 mm long. They bite if disturbed, but apparently the venom is harmless to humans. I am sure she will keep some of the insects at bay in your garden for you.

  • FL FL on Sep 15, 2017

    Its an Argiope aurantia (Black & Yellow Garden Spider). "Summary

    Mature females are enormous, their bold black-and-yellow pattern adding to their intimidating appearance. Common in gardens, orchards, forest edges, old fields, and farms, they spin a classic round orb web which is usually decorated with a bold, zigzag band of silk called a stabilimentum." http://www.spiders.us/species/filter/colorado/

  • Sharon Sharon on Sep 15, 2017

    Argiope Aurantia

    • Sylvia Smothers Lawing Sylvia Smothers Lawing on Sep 16, 2017

      Thank you so much for the help. It seems my spider is okay to be a welcome guest in my garden. I will enjoy watching the progress of web-building.

  • Ebbjdl Ebbjdl on Sep 16, 2017

    I just read on Web MD about spiders. Most of the ones that do damage are west,and south states. Go on the site and type in spiders. Good Luck!

  • Donna Lynn Andrews Donna Lynn Andrews on Sep 17, 2017

    I have always known these as Writing Spiders and have always loved their webs.

    • Carmen Roll Carmen Roll on Sep 17, 2017

      Same here. I detest spiders...except for the "Writing Spider"! Would never want to get too close to it, but I leave them alone and admire their beautiful webs!

  • PJay PJay on Sep 17, 2017

    Here in Georgia these are called Writing Spiders or Zipper Spiders.

  • Linda Floyd Hudson Linda Floyd Hudson on Sep 17, 2017

    We always called them "Chinese Writing Spiders". I'm sure that it would hurt to get bitten by these but have never come across anyone who has.

    • Johanna Holt Jeffres Johanna Holt Jeffres on Sep 17, 2017

      It's a Garden Spider, Linda, and they are harmless. They eat a lot of bugs & grasshoppers. They grow quite rapidly! I love it when I have one at my house!

  • Janice White Janice White on Sep 17, 2017

    i dont know it's name but I'd be willing to bet you it's extremely dangerous

  • It is a banana spider. They're harmless & I've always been told that they eat other spiders.

  • Yvo10433696 Yvo10433696 on Sep 18, 2017

    In the South, we have always called them Writing Spiders! I love to look at their webs...such a perfect artist! They are harmless....and interesting to watch...if you blow on their web, they will start bouncing around the web!

  • Carolyn Holtzclaw Carolyn Holtzclaw on Sep 18, 2017

    Here in Florida they are also called Banana Spiders! They may be beneficial to the garden area but I have an abnormal fear of spiders so they have to go with all of the other pests.


    They will make you look like you are the best martial arts expert if or when you accidentally walk into one of their webs with IT sitting right in the middle of it! Trust me, I know!

  • Linda Floyd Hudson Linda Floyd Hudson on Sep 18, 2017

    we have one right now and she caught a cicada yesterday.

  • Jason Gregg Jason Gregg on Sep 19, 2017

    I don't know about the genus and species, but growing up my family called this kind of spider a garden spider. They are great to have around for catching flies, mosquitoes etc.


  • Julie Medved Julie Medved on Sep 22, 2017

    Over here in Australia we have a similar looking spider, we call it the St Andrews cross spider and it leaves a cross on its web. Can make you sick if it bites you.

  • DAG12262022 DAG12262022 on Sep 22, 2017

    i\d be scared

  • Buragoz Buragoz on Jan 20, 2021

    oh god no thanks

  • Radiant Radiant on Jan 20, 2021

    Wooow!! He's wonderful and I think he's harmless :) I have seen in my garden some cute little spiders as well but never had the opportunity to see one like you just did. Truly wonderful, but I don't know how it's called. You should google it, I'm sure if you insert the image in the images section it'll give you the name. I can't save your photo, if I could I would have done it myself. Until then... take care of him, spiders have their contribution to the ecosystem and not many people know this. I somehow understand their irrational fear of spiders but all at once, you can't be scared of such a beautiful creature...

  • Brian Duty Brian Duty on Apr 09, 2021

    Corn spider

  • Michelle Leslie Michelle Leslie on Oct 12, 2021

    Hi Sylvia, that little beauty is a garden spider also known as a golden orb-weaver and she's completely harmless to us humans. We love seeing them in our garden and it's believed that when they weave the zig-zag pattern on their webs it helps attracts bugs and serves as a warning to birds not to fly into the web. They're tidy little things too. Every evening the female spider will dismantle her web by eating the silken threads and spin a new one the next day.