Posted by Kelcie Hyatt on July 27, 2005

Q: I was out working in my garden pullin my weeds when i noticed that there was a spider. I dug out 2 shovelfuls of dirt and in that time about 8 of these spiders came out. I don't know what they are and would like to know something about them. Their body looks really close to that of the color of a grey tree bark, light grey with patches of dark grey except that the back part of it is white and is quite larger than the rest of the body. They came in various sizes. Where these spiders were there was quite a thick patch of weeks that was growing up next to a board that was a tree that we made the garden box out of. Hopefully you can help me. Thanks for your time.

State: Yukon Territory

Habitat: suburban/yard

A: Spiders come in such a wide variety of colors, sizes, shapes, and liftstyles, that I'd need really detailed info to help you with an ID. May I suggest that you look for a guide to spiders and see if you can find one that looks similar to those in your garden? The Golden Nature Guide to Spiders has lots of nice pictures that should help and you can get a paperback copy that is not expensive.

I know that lots of people are afraid of spiders but they are extremely important in keeping insect numbers in check. Spiders eat incredible numbers of insects and are important in preventing insect populations from overwhelming us. In the Yukon area, there are NO poisonous spiders that you need to worry about. Those in your garden will feed on whatever insects they can find and should help you raise a bounitful harvest of vegetables. Good luck and I hope this helps. Thanks for asking.

John Wiessinger ( July 28, 2005)