You’re minding your own business, just walking down a woodland trail and gazing at the splendid foliage when yuck!…you’re abruptly swiping away the sticky tangles of a cobweb that suddenly seems to be enrobing your entire head. “Ooh, it’s all over me, what a mess!”You’ve just walked face-first into the insect-snagging trap of the White Micrathena (Micrathena mitrata), a small orb-weaver spider that famously drapes its webs across openings in the forest understory, especially those created by human footpaths.Despite the sometimes persistent occurrence of these annoying encounters during your leisurely hikes, be assured that Micrathena spiders are particularly beneficial. You see, these seldom-noticed arachnids are on the hunt, lying in wait to pounce upon the pesky insects that are looking to hunt down you. The placement of their snares specifically targets the mosquitos and tiny flies that might otherwise be gnawing away at your flesh or creeping up your nose and crash landing into your eyeballs as you stroll. While these little spiders might look threatening, their spines are no more dangerous than a rose thorn. And as for their bite, it’s only potent enough to introduce the enzymes necessary for digesting gnats. During the warmer days of autumn, you’ll find the White Micrathena hanging around trails within the lower Susquehanna River gorge and at other scattered locations throughout the watershed. So if you’re out leaf peeping later this month, remember to watch where you’re going. Then, as you encounter those Micrathena webs, you can do the limbo to pass right on by!
