Garden Friends

I stood in front of the window, eyes unfocussed just staring out into the garden, contemplating the day ahead. A flash of blue jolted me from my reverie as a large dragonfly almost kissed the window. It performed another circuit coming closer once more before speeding skywards. I think it was a Southern Hawker, but it was gone before I could be sure.

Stepping out into the garden, in the vain hope it would return, I looked to see what had lured it so close by. Lots of honeybees and small hoverflies were busy making the most of the many pots and baskets bursting with vibrant flowers. I think something hovering around the hanging baskets had caught its keen eyes.

There was so much activity amidst the rainbow splendour; the aforementioned bees & hoverflies, shield bugs, butterflies, the odd aphid, the emerald glint of green bottle flies and a sheltering snail or two. That’s just the invertebrates, in this small corner of my garden.

Amidst it all, suspended on gossamer threads, were a multitude of Orb weavers. These garden spiders produce the most amazing wheel-shaped webs that radiate out, with anchor threads, which span quite large distances.

So, it’s definitely that time of year again when these beauties magically appear. Having said that, this also means that early morning jaunts are regularly punctuated by the twang of a pesky anchor thread breaking across my face! This is closely followed by “Oh no, is it on me?” My question is usually answered by the scurrying of something fury around my neck. Yes, they are hairy; in fact it’s surprising just how hairy many invertebrates are. I’m not saying I don’t enjoy viewing these little friends at close quarters; I just like it to be on my terms and preferably not hitching a ride on my person!

I watched them for a while in the centre of their domains, waiting patiently for a hapless dinner guest. They have such striking markings in deep browns, gold and orange hues, with white accents. Each was different in some subtle way, some faced bodies uppermost and others only the underside was on show. I try to get as close as I dare without disturbing them, just so I can see the hairy projections from legs and abdomen. One is definitely spikier than the other, but they both have beautiful stripy legs. I went in to grab my sketching materials and on my return, one spider had managed to catch a honeybee and had wrapped it tightly in silk. It kept its prize for two days, discarding it at some point on the third.

They tend to re spin their webs in approximately the same place each day, so I was able to sketch two of these lovely specimens over the course of four days. I feel that I’ve got to know them a little and it’s reassuring to know they are still in their same spots this evening.

Their beautiful markings and the shapes their legs make are bold and strong, in contrast to their fine barely visible web. I think perhaps they may eventually be immortalised in a Kitchen Litho print, which will be nice as their lifecycle ends with the close of this year. Perhaps I’ll even be fortunate to see their spiderlings hatch next spring.