Friday, August 15, 2008

Charlotte Comes to Visit - Permanently?




A few weeks ago a visitor came to our door one evening and decided to make it home. Just out on the porch steps a large "Orb" garden spider weaves an enormous web every evening about an hour after sundown. Early in the morning just before the glow of early morning she quickly gathers up her web full of small insects and takes them home. Home is a hanging gismo like spider decoration hanging down over the porch eve.

It's kinda like a short windchime - without the chimes. Its legs and feet hang down about 4 inches from the body and its feet are little bell shaped metal things that are about the size and shape of hershey kisses.
This is where "Charlotte" lives during the day and I presume eats her breakfast, lunch and dinner. This is also where she goes if it starts to storm in the middle of the night. I found it very hard to get a good picture of her but I will keep trying.
I'm also not sure of her identity. Can anyone help me here?.

Charlotte is about the size of a quarter over all. My wife is very solitisus of her and makes sure people going in and out the door avoid disturbing her or her web. Charlotte has been around now for about 3 weeks. And ate a lot of mosquetoes. I can deal with that.