Golden silk orb-weaver

Comment le reconnaître

• Females have a silvery white front body (cephalothorax) and a longer orange-brown abdomen with two rows of small white-yellow spots.1
• Females have dark yellow and brown banding on their legs, with black brush-like tufts of hair near the joints of the first, second and fourth leg pairs.1
• Females are about 24 to 40 mm long when fully grown.1
• Males are much smaller, about 6 mm long, with a plain dark brown body and legs.1
• The large webs are circular and vertical, and the yellow pigment in the silk gives them a golden glow in good light.1

Souvent confondu avec : Trichonephila plumipes also has stiff hairs on its legs. In that species the hairs are set more closely together than in the golden silk orb-weaver.1