Fall is a great time to observe spiders. This is a black and yellow garden spider (Argiope aurantia). The female spider, shown above, can be over an inch long!
Notice the zigzag pattern inside the web. This is called the stabilimentum. It is unclear what its function is, but it might be a warning to the birds so that they don’t fly into the web and mistakenly destroy it.
Black and yellow garden spiders are not harmful to humans.
Have you seen this spider?