Banana spiders and their impressive webs have returned to South Florida.
These large golden silk spiders weave webs up to 3 feet wide. Native to warmer regions, they lurk at the edge of dense forests and light poles. Some place their webs in trees at eye-level height.
Joanne Howes, with the Anne Kolb Nature Center in Hollywood, says you’re bound to come across them because it’s fall. During late fall the adults die off, with a new generation hatching and growing to maturity throughout spring and maturing in the late summer to early fall.
“You will most likely see them this time of year,” Howes said of the large female spiders.
The female spiders can grow 2 inches in size, excluding the span of their striped legs. The females are yellow and typically live about a month. They’re larger than the males, which are about a half-inch long, dark brown and live two to three weeks.
People shouldn’t kill them because they’re an important part of the environment, Howes said. They prey on a variety of insects, such as mosquitoes, moths, wasps and large centipede.
Banana spiders may look intimidating, but they’re actually timid and not considered dangerous. Though they aren’t poisonous, their bite can be painful.
