Argiope aurantia

© copyright 1997 by Bill Welch
(Used with permission from Bob Welch's website: http://www.a-natural-selection.com)

This large, beneficial and harmless common "black and yellow" garden spider is found in much of the U.S. and Canada. In some regions, it is also referred to as a "banana spider". However, the term "banana spider" can mean very different things in different regions. For instance, in the Gulf coastal region, the tetragnathid Nephila clavipes is often called the "banana spider" as are assorted heteropodids (giant crab spiders) and mygalomorphs.