Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in Florida - Part 2 - the Golden Web Strength Test

Video: Strength Test of the Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider Golden Silk Collected from a piece of the "rope" of its  golden web shown in this photo.

Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in Florida 

Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in Florida 

The Golden Silk Thread

I tested this golden silk by lifting 7 ordinary household items. Lifting a pair of scissors and a Droid Smartphone were too easy so I gradually increased the weight the golden web supported:

Two Small Bananas

Canon Point and Shoot Camera

8 ounce soft drink (1/2 pound)

Pound of bananas - no problem!

Two pound hammer - you'll have to watch the video!

This is the second blog on the Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in our Florida Backyard. The first blog Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in Florida (Part 1) discussed the spider. Part two is a test of the strength of the "golden silk".  A sample of the golden web of the giant Golden Silk Orb Weaver that was captured and release in Florida (see Part 1:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RXyYzjzZvs ) was tested to demonstrate it's amazing strength. Some of the strongest biological material on earth. These big spiders share the backyard ecosystem with the birds and other creatures. They are not poisonous and rarely come into contact with humans unless we unwittingly walk into their huge and strong webs. This web was at least 8 feet wide and 4 to 8 feet off the ground!

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Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in Florida (Part 1)

Video: Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in Florida

Beautiful Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider In Her Amazing Golden Web (Florida)

The Business Side of a Large Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider in Florida. 
In part two I'll test the strength of this spider silk!

Much to my surprise a giant Golden Silk Orb Weaver Spider took up residence in our Florida backyard while we were on vacation. This 4 inch long amazing specimen is a female. The male, which I did not see, is a fraction of her size. I almost walked right into her as she perched about 5 feet off the ground in a web that was on the order of 8 feet by 4 feet, and characteristically from what I've read the web was tilted at an angle. Of course my first thought was get a video of her. As she was so docile and unconcerned by my presences that was not a problem. In the video the giant spider proceeds to do what can only be described as grooming, stretching and scratching. I guess even huge spiders get an itch now and then. She is basically just chillin' out in her amazing golden web - a spider this big has a personality! 

Just as in the case of beneficial snakes these big spiders should not be killed, despite their intimidating manner they are not poisonous. I grabbed a dead tree branch and started to roll up the web kind of like cotton candy and surprisingly the big spider gathered within the web on the branch and made no attempt to run - they are not built for "running" by the way and do not like to be on solid ground where they move very slowly compared to say a wolf spider or black widow.

In the second photo above of the underside you can see the spider hanging on a large "rope" of her golden web. She stayed absolutely still and made no attempt to flee, but gave an awesome display of bio-luminescence in red, green and yellow as her only defense as "running" would be useless. After getting to know it a bit and having fleeting thoughts of keeping it as a pet - I let her go in the heavy brush behind the house where she will rebuild a golden web away from people and continue to consume large insects.  Four inches long, pretty colors, bio-luminescent displays of red, yellow and green, a head that looks just like a human skull,  and soft beautiful golden silk that is some of the strongest biological material on the planet - what's not to like.  I kept a piece of the silk web "rope" as it was very much just like thread and in part two of this blog I give the golden silk a strength test!

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