On September 30th, 2020, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) shared a picture on Facebook of a “human-sized” spider web spanning from one tree to another.
https://www.facebook.com/moconservation/photos/a.10150666295867962/10158691082102962/?type=3
“Those are the kind that literally ‘catch’ people if they walk through them at night lol,” Jennifer Duffy commented on the post.
The giant spider web was captured on camera by MDC Media Specialist, Francis Skalicky, who was hiking on a trail in Springfield. According to the post, the web was created by an orbweaver spider (also known as a barn spider).
https://www.facebook.com/MyBlessedLittleHomestead/photos/bc.AbpxVGkPyxBoPlCTnA7Vwn1Cp1zHhGJptjlaApvB39FQXzoWu0DiqzYTO71NI8RJ6tceGY0k0fAB5aO1WzdSlxCgg6B-ZgGiTB9AHJvBGgB2SukT3qyhMMQINpQhI5wSYMa7CeKSdNVcmK1aXDUu5mAM/4701665419845298/?opaqueCursor=Abp_h6y21WIvFlB6v9MSLgqMRq_RFlTrJFE4-IP0tckvOc9GcXV0cdT9upHQE_aOVRaIp542d2qv8vhjceb6d-u0Sz952Ct4k62gc0jGgwc8VkjBhcgVxvi3hBZ58JpjKeaufScTxaL0lnEQboJvwsartJs2lxOthGMxh74ixwyq9YVmZZh31y_HDGDTKjDKzZw2qDPbDmJPGl2qhMDVTgGVxnkR2k3-8nllEPNylfrYkLqCrvGD4SMvN9uWNizUaq94FiMHaJboA-SvqNJL_Xi4HldD5ZfoqiYZaFQqUgBk0y7p-A3IRmy7kbpzEbewGTuyhI_yTsiXhBHxCkQ_L1lnuBs8fsAtVezoAw3ingo69yPuONr5-nHGjiEkego8jqMimbopx765MW0YCVtVEFNl3EVXsk5KIBEn9n_JH5g0MvWIL67x5l32cf0fXQK-lFqlOEdoArMhrGmnSna5FTIfyLV8vrXqOIRSkwGreksz2wyr1wqO95oN_ip5rEfBzOZXlDuMYEytE4JmR7FLT-EAjL7fg17r1V5NUZIaEHjqCZyh-EkYUSWiZi2brf5T5ghb389F71nfxD5m9acsCJit
While the orbweaver spider is known to be large, hairy, and scary – it’s for the most part harmless to humans. The spiders build their webs before dark and they catch their prey at night. When the morning comes around they recycle their web by eating it so they’ll have the nutrients it takes to make another web the following evening.
MDC wrote on their website, “Webs are built at dusk and used for snaring prey during the night. At dawn, the spider reingests the strands (along with moisture that has collected on it as dew) and recycles the nutrients in making the next web.”
You can visit the official website of the Missouri Department of Conservation to learn more about spotted orbweavers.