She's gonna be a mama!

If you read my post Spider versus mantis (Oct. 10, 2010), then you'll recall our large argiope (Argiope aurantia) that had been living over a garage door. After a close encounter with a hungry praying mantis, the spider relocated to our front porch, where she's been living ever since. Smart move because we turn on the porch light every night. Voilà–plenty of flying insects to eat!

Lately, I've been keeping an eye on her, and awhile ago, I noticed she wasn't on her web. Oh, no! Had she left or died? I stuck my head out the front door. Yay! An egg sac! Looked like maybe she had just laid it. Now that she's done her job, she may die or hang on a few more weeks. I shall miss her but how wonderful to know that we'll have argiope children next spring! It's been a long time since we've had an Argiope aurantia egg sac at the Pink House.