You don't have to leave home

Last weekend, I tagged along on a field trip about regional geology.  The scenery was stunning to look at and it was nice to learn more about how it was formed, but my real goal was to see more insects and spiders.  

Palouse River Canyon.  It may look like Arizona, but it really is Washington.

One stop, along a river shore, was particularly impressive for its large number of extremely large spiders.  Some of these spiders made their funnel webs between the rocks by the water's edge, while others stretched their webs between the trees and bushes.

A large orb-weaver spider.

An orb-weaver spider eating a stinkbug.

I remember thinking at the time how the proximity to water must provide these spiders with lots of prey -- and how glad I was that I couldn't stumble across anything like that in my own backyard.  I returned to the bus with a bit of web stuck to my arm and an uncomfortable crawling sensation.

Yesterday, I got to experience that creepy-crawly feeling again, and this time in my own backyard.  I found a web strung between two hollyhocks, with something the size and color of a dried hollyhock seed pod hanging in the middle.  Only it wasn't a seed pod; it was the owner of the web.

On closer inspection, there is no way to mistake this orb-weaver for a hollyhock seed pod -- but it was about the same size.

I didn't like putting my camera -- and hands -- directly under this spider, but it was the safest way to look at the other side.

Although the spider looked menacing, it did not make a move while I photographed it.  The creepy-crawly feeling came later, when I turned back to look at the web again and the spider was gone.