Wasp spider
This large orb weaver has bold wasp like bands but poses no danger to people, and marks the centre of its web with a zigzag ribbon of silk.
| Where | Long grass in sunny meadows |
|---|---|
| Size | Female 9.9 to 22 mm, male 5 to 8.3 mm body length |
| When | July to September |
Females are strikingly patterned with black, yellow and white bands across a large, oval abdomen, while males are far smaller and plain silvery grey. The web itself often carries a broad zigzag ribbon of white silk running through its centre.
It builds large orb webs low among long grass in open, sunny meadows, and reaches maturity in mid to late summer, when the larger females become most visible sitting head down at the hub, waiting for grasshoppers and other insects to blunder in.
Traits
Habitat
Grassland
Colour
Black, Yellow, White
Active
Day
To people
Despite its wasp like colours, this spider is not dangerous to people and is highly unlikely to bite even if picked up.
Activity through the year
Often confused with
Similarly large, but the female's abdomen is silvery grey and scalloped along the sides rather than banded in black, yellow and white, and it is generally confined to much warmer, drier localities than the wasp spider tolerates.
Questions
Is the Wasp spider dangerous to people?
Despite its wasp like colours, this spider is not dangerous to people and is highly unlikely to bite even if picked up.
When can you see the Wasp spider?
The Wasp spider can be seen from July to September, by day.
Plate retouched from a museum specimen photo by Staatliche Naturwissenschaftliche Sammlungen Bayerns, CC BY 4.0, GBIF Licence
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Last updated 2026-09-27. Every entry is checked against published sources.