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Spotted Orbweaver
Neoscona crucifera
Neoscona crucifera is an orb-weaver spider in the family Araneidae. It is found in the United States from Maine to Florida in the east, to Minnesota in the Midwest, to Arizona in the southwest, southern California coastal communities and in Mexico. Its common names include Hentz orbweaver (after Nicholas Marcellus Hentz), spotted orbweaver, and barn spider. The name "barn spider" is also commonly used for a different spider, Araneus cavaticus; its appearance is similar to a Neoscona nautica.
Generally nocturnal, females may become diurnal in the fall. Females are about 9.5–19 millimeters (0.37–0.75 in) long, while males are somewhat smaller. The upper surface of the abdomen is brown and hairy. The legs display alternating light and dark brown bands. The undersurface of the abdomen is black, with two white spots.
From the article Neoscona crucifera on Wikipedia (CC BY-SA), quoted section by section
What it does
Moths and crane flies make up the primary diet of Neoscona crucifera, although they will feed on a variety of other insects such as grasshoppers, bees and beetles that may have become trapped in their webs.
Wikipedia: “Diet”
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
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geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
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In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Neoscona crucifera in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
This page is assembled live from iNaturalist, GBIF, Wikipedia, the Source Library and the Internet Archive. It is not yet part of the hand-edited codex. iNaturalist taxon 85034.