Orchard Orbweaver

Orchard Orbweaver in Columbia, MD on June 27, 2020. Since starting macro photography this year, I have noted how many spiders are taking up residence on our balconies. Most of the ones I see are this particular spider. The size of them has varied greatly. This one in particular was rather large. I plan to do some research to determine if the different sizes indicate different sexes or it just comes down to randomness.

The web of this Orbweaver was of interest due to how large it was. The silk was spanning several layers with a height of about 1 foot. I had to intricately position myself below to get a good view. I was careful to not disturb the main web but it noted my presence once or twice by scurrying closer to me. I did get caught in the bottom layers once but tried to be careful on my next attempt. Their webs are occasionally attached to places I am unable to see and I accidentally destroy the webs shifting a chair or walking through it.

Currently we have several webs on each balcony of 3 different spiders but no sign of babies yet. I have only seen one spider wrapping a meal up so far.

Lens - Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG OS HSM Macro Lens on Nikon D500