The sun was low in the east as I returned from a morning walk. Dried weed stalks from last year stood 3-4 ft tall between me and the sun. Near the top of many of them were small spider webs about 3-5 inches across. Each was covered with dew drops reflecting the sunlight. They deserved a closer look.
As I peered down for a better look, I wondered if the spider architect was sitting anywhere nearby? I couldn’t see any spider on this one.
Moving to another plant, I got down on one knee and noticed the lower angle of the sunlight caused it to reflect better showing the structure more clearly. It was a tangle of strands. Still no spider was visible.
I bent farther down to look under the web and found the spider hanging upside-down. Very clever of you.
Our View From Iowa 
That’s quite a web. Big and messy isn’t the worst way to go after your prey. I wonder if spiders that build webs like this are more successful hunters than the ones that build pretty, symmetrical webs.
Interesting question. I vote for messy.
Probably a funnel-web spider. Their ‘webs’ (such as they are) tend to hang from the branches of bushes and low branched trees and can look a mess or quite beautiful, depending on the atmospheric conditions and the spider. Look out for them when it’s been raining or there is dew – the droplets look enchanting hanging from them. Also – beware – these spiders bite!
I will beware. Not a fan of spiders.
There’s my sense of observation completely gone – I’d somehow missed the dew drops!
Great pictures! Don’t let that spider bite you!
Nope…I stay far enough away. 🙂
Spiders are not my favorite thing but I enjoyed your photos and I am amazed by their intricate webs.
Thank you. They aren’t mine either. They are my phobia. I keep it mostly well controlled. Big ones are the worst challenge. They do weave some wild webs.
Hats off to you for posting about them because they are my phobia too!
From your description, I knew it was an orb spider of some sorts. I had once moved into a rental that had been vacant for a while but it was a cute little house with a large garage at an excellent price.
As I began sweeping off the front porch I came across a black widow and beat it to death with my broom…and then there was another…and another. I was freaking out wailing my broom, hair flying madly and having huge second thoughts about the place. I had a friend who was an exterminator and asked him to take a look at the place. He showed me the same webs you pictured all about the back yard and told me they were all black widows.
I read up on them and they are not the easiest to get rid of because you have to hit the underside to kill them. My friend was successful and about a month later I did move in. I waited a month to make sure there were no babies surviving. I never had a problem after that and the place was a great home for a couple of years…but I won’t wander into any areas that have those webs again!
That sounds like an unpleasant experience.
Yep!
Hi Jim and Melanie, wonderful post and pictures! There is nothing like the feeling of walking in the bush and feeling your face break through a spider web. Sometimes they are hard to see. I wouldn’t want to do it with the one in your photograph. Take care. Bob