25th July 2025

Wasp Spider

Found this beauty today, a Wasp Spider (Agriope bruennichi). The Wasp Spider is a fairly recent arrival in the UK from the continent and is spreading, quite rapidly now, across the south-east and beyond. Note the white zig-zag stripe across the web. This is typical, but its purpose remains unclear. The spider is supposedly harmless to us but I, for one, will be taking no chances!

The spider was in this area of awkward corner set-aside on the way from Crixhall Court to Goodnestone. It was sown a few years ago with a seed mix of non-dominating grasses and native wildflowers. It is full of butterflies and other invertebrates and the wildflower mix has Musk Mallow, Greater Burnet, Wild Carrot, Ox-eye Daisy, Wild Parsnip, Hogweed and others. This is a great advert for the nature-friendly farming regime of the Goodnestone Estate.