Golden Silk Spider
The golden silk spider, Nephila clavipes (Linnaeus), is a large orange and brown spider with the feathery tufts on its legs is well know to most native southerners. As typical with most spiders, there is little danger from an encounter with the golden silk spider. The spider will bite only if held or pinched, and the bite itself will produce only localized pain with a slight redness, which quickly goes away. On the whole, the bite is much less severe than a bee string. Typically, the webs are made in open woods or edges of dense forest, usually attached to trees and low shrubs.