Little Miss Muffet and her Spider(s)

 Nature has really opened her book for us this year.
The black and yellow garden spiders( Argiope auranti)
were all over Wildcat Woods. Black and Yellows are also known as the writing spiders, they will make zig zag patterns of silk in their webs.  One of the most common and largest spiders found throughout the US they are harmless to humans and very beneficial to the environment. Feeding on large insects including moths and grasshoppers. It would be interesting too see what would happen if a preying Mantis were to get into a one of their webs!
Growing and feeding all summer the spiders are at their full size in October at which time they will mate. (the males usually have their webs close to the females)
The female builds her egg sac in grass or ferns close to the ground. The young spiders hatch and emerge in the spring, they will spread out throughout their habitat and began eating the bad guys.
The 4th grade girls began finding egg sacs along the trails and like good Outdoor Adventure kids they wanted to study them in depth. 


 The egg sacs are quite big and contain hundreds of eggs.
The girls collected two sacs; placing them in a glass jar 
containing materials from their habitat, putting a net
cover over the jar mouth it was then placed in a safe place.
If all goes well the tiny spiders should hatch next spring.
The kids are going to monitor them through out the winter
and spring taking pictures to document what goes on
with the eggs. 
                                                                                                                                                                              

The 3rd Graders have the "Scat Scout Girls" and now 

we have the 4th Grade "Spider Girls"