I took these shots in Richardson TX 75082. I'm fairly confident that this spide that took up residence next to our patio is a female Argiope Aurantia (Lucas?) aka writing spider like the orb-weaver in Charlotte's Web. She spun new zigzags every day for a few weeks, then sat over the center of her web daily to catch, wrap & eat several bugs including a mud dauber, butterfly & cicada. One morning new zigzag activity completely stopped and never resumed. She moved to a new location on her web, not far from where she created an egg sac under the eaves. When & how will the babies hatch? I've read different accounts that sometimes overwintering in the egg sac occurs & sometimes not. Does her new location mean she is guarding her egg sac & has no need to attract a mate? Any links to accurate information would be greatly appreciated!
Argiope Aurantia questions
"In areas with a cold winter, the eggs of this species hatch in the late summer or autumn, but the hatchling spiders become dormant and do not leave the egg sack until the following spring." See https://animaldiversity.org/site/accounts/information/Argiope_aurantia.html for more details.
To the best of my knowledge, the female spider only mates once.
Excellent resource, thank you so much!
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