Golden Silk Orbweaver
HarmlessTrichonephila clavipes · also called banana spider, golden orb weaver, writing spider (misapplied)
The golden silk orbweaver is the huge spider that southern hikers walk face-first into. Its silk is genuinely golden and among the strongest natural fibres known. Despite the size and the 'banana spider' nickname it shares with a genuinely dangerous South American species, it is harmless.
Quick facts
- Bite risk
- Harmless. The name 'banana spider' is also used for the Brazilian wandering spider, which is dangerous and does not occur in the United States. They are unrelated.
- Size
- Body 24–40 mm. One of the largest orbweavers in the US — body up to an inch and a half, legspan up to five inches.
- Appearance
- Long cylindrical orange-brown abdomen with pale spots, and long legs carrying conspicuous dark brushes of hair at the joints. The silk is a deep, obvious gold in sunlight.
- Web
- Enormous golden orb web, sometimes several feet across, strung across trails and between trees in southern woodland.
- Found in
- woods, garden, water
- Family
- Araneidae
- Range
- 10 US states
How to identify a golden silk orbweaver
- Distinctly golden silk, obvious in sunlight.
- Dark tufts of hair at the leg joints, like leg warmers.
- Long cylindrical abdomen rather than a round one.
- Very large webs across openings in southern woodland.
How it behaves
Sits permanently in the web. Retreats to the edge when disturbed.
What the golden silk orbweaver is confused with
One observation settles each of these.
Joro spiders are brighter yellow and blue-grey with no leg tufts, and are further north.
Where it lives
If you think you were bitten
- Most suspected spider bites are not spider bites. Studies of patients presenting with a “spider bite” repeatedly find that the large majority are bacterial skin infections — frequently MRSA — which need antibiotics rather than reassurance. A spreading, painful, pus-filled sore is far more likely to be an infection than a spider.
- Wash it, ice it, and watch it. Clean the area with soap and water, apply a cold pack, and keep an eye on it.
- Get medical care if the wound spreads or darkens, if you develop cramping, sweating, fever or severe abdominal pain, or if you are confident it was a widow or a recluse.
- Bring the spider only if it is already dead and to hand. Do not go looking for it. Doctors treat symptoms, not species.
In the US, the Poison Help line is 1-800-222-1222. This site is a reference, not medical advice.