Insect and Spider Identification: Identifying Spider, 1 by Prof_P

Prof_P wrote:
Hello,
I have a bee hotel in my garden and it seems like it's a real success (i've seen baby bees). But we've recently noticed an unfamiliar spider that harasses our bees, I'm unsure what kind of spider it is. It has a really strong and sticky web (seemingly a circular web, but kinda rough and randomized of structure. There is also a funnel web nearby, but I doubt it's from the unidentified spider. The size of the spider is about 4cm (1.5 inches) leg span.

It's quite aggressive towards me when I walk by as it tries to approximate me as hard as (s)he can. My sister thinks it's a female that already gave birth to many new baby spiders, which is really bad news for the bees.

Sorry for the unclear image, I'm prepared to take a new one if needed.

My question is: what is this spider? Can I (safely) remove it (kill if necessary or by accident)?

Thanks in advance

Edit: after further investigation, I've seen multiple more around my garden shed, they have 2 white triangles on the underside of their abdomen. Another one sat in a circular web that was very strong.


This message was edited May 30, 2018 12:08 PM