For this entry, you will travel with me all the way to San Miguel de Allende, in the state of Guanajuato. My family and I traveled there for a wedding, and while we were in the city, known for its colonial architecture and colorful festivals, we went to a botanical garden called, El Charco del Ingenio (The Puddle of Ingenuity). We went in expecting to enjoy an easy hike with lots of different plants, but what we experienced was A LOT scarier.
The creature that made this hike so scary was a spider known as the Western Spotted Orb-Weaver (Neoscona oaxacensis). This is a common garden spider that builds very large, round webs. It usually has colors like orange, brown, tan or gray, which help it blend in with tree bark and dry leaves. On its back, you can often see darker brown or black markings that look like leaf shapes or wavy lines. Its belly is round and full, almost like a small marble or gumdrop, while the front part of its body is smaller.
This spider has eight long legs that are often striped with light and dark bands. The legs and body are covered in tiny hairs that help it feel vibrations in its web. Including its legs, its size ranges from about the size of a nickel to a quarter, and females are usually bigger than males.
