Think again before you swat away spider webs attached to your house and shrubs. The common garden spider, Araneus diadematus, is doing you a favor. It may not be a bug-free world out there because of your temporary tenant, but it's most certainly bug-less. A beneficial predator, the spider eats small pest insects (aphids, flies, grasshoppers).
You can spot a garden spider by its brown abdomen, usually marked by a white cross. They grow as large as 1-3/4 inches and live near houses and garden areas.
Click here to read more about spiders' role in controlling pests and how to increase the number of spiders in your garden. Click here to learn why DuPont studies super-tough spider silk as a model for Kevlar and spandex.
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-- Ann Portal