Argiope trifasciata (Forskål, 1775) Discussion
banded garden spider
Comments on September 17, 2007 Observation
Michael D. Campbell
39.8689, -85.9306
1
Submitted: October 27, 2007 at 7:49:52 PM MST
![Argiope trifasciata (Michael D. Campbell [September 17, 2007])](/observers/images/uploaded/Thumb_91_2007-10-27_Mature Argiope trifasciata.jpg)
Location: McCordsville, Buck Creek Township, Hancock County, Indiana Date & Time: September 17, 2007 18:15 hours Habitat: Wildflower garden Predominant Vegetation: goldenrod, obedient plant, asters, coneflowers, coreopsis Details: This is the largest of the four females in my yard. The males have all vanished by now, I imagine they were consumed by their mates as I discovered the dried husk of one in this female's web more than a week prior to this sighting. The female pictured is eating a fairly large grasshopper. She has also been observed eating moths, butterflies, wasps and a variety of smaller prey. All of the females observed in my yard changed into their adult coloration after the males disappeared which leads me to believe that mating is the catalyst for the change into adult markings and not the other way around.
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