Banded Garden Spiders

Banded Garden Spiders

If you have any size of outdoor space, there are going to be spiders in it. Banded garden spiders are common throughout the US, generally preferring to spin their webs in tall grasses. Should they be considered pests? Is there anything you can do to get rid of them?

How to Identify a Banded Garden Spider

  • As the name suggests, banded garden spiders have stripes or “bands” on their legs and body.
  • They are generally white, black and yellow, with darker brown and orange bands on their legs.
  • A member of the orbweaver family, banded garden spiders spin large, regular webs in grasses and vegetation.
  • Females are much larger than males, growing up to 1 inch (2.5cm) in body length.
  • Egg sacs produced by banded garden spiders can contain over a thousand eggs each.
banded garden spider

Do Banded Garden Spiders Bite?

It’s not very likely that a banded garden spider will bite a human but it’s not impossible. Luckily for us, while the spider does have a venomous bite, the size of its fangs means that the amount of venom it can deposit is minimal, and quite apart from that, the venom of the banded garden spider is not poisonous to humans. There have been no recorded cases of a banded garden spider bite needing medical intervention.

Banded garden spiders will not bite a human unless extremely provoked. They are not aggressive and prefer to remain static in their webs rather than hunting for prey.

Should You Get Rid of Banded Garden Spiders?

Banded garden spiders are generally considered to be beneficial to a garden, so don’t worry too much about seeing them outside. They are great for natural pest control, trapping all sorts of insects and bugs in their strong webs. This in turn is better for your plants, as there will be fewer pests trying to eat them.

While the females can grow quite large, banded garden spiders are not aggressive and don’t travel much, preferring to hang in their webs and wait for their prey to come to them. This means that you probably won’t find them trying to infest your home. As they trap and eat real outdoor pests such as flies, mosquitoes and wasps, you may wish you had more banded garden spiders looking after your yard!
Banded Garden Spider in Utah

Banded Garden Spider Control

Banded garden spiders are generally good for the health of the ecosystem of your yard but it’s understandable if you consider them to be a pest. For one thing, their webs can be large, reaching 60cm or almost 2 feet across. The webs are also strong, meaning that it might be inconvenient to find them in your way.

Female banded garden spiders can also grow quite large, giving the false impression that they are dangerous. They can also lay thousands of eggs at a time, potentially creating a future infestation of banded garden spiders, although most of the spiderlings won’t actually end up surviving into adulthood.

It’s not possible to guarantee a removal of all spiders from an outside area, nor is it really advisable, but professional pest control companies such as H2 can remove webs from hard-to-reach places and provide treatments to prevent spiders from getting into your home. H2 Pest Control works with clients, creating personalized treatment plans to get the most effective pest control results each time.