I came home yesterday to see my yard completely covered in these tiny spider webs. The webs were floating through the air and covering the grass. I mow 3 acres and my yard was covered. The spiders had to be almost microscopic. I never actually saw one. What could have hatched out in such numbers? I'm in far west KY, zone 7a. It has been been unusually dry and warm this fall. I have Encore azaleas still in full bloom and it's the middle of November. These are usually done by mid October, so the weather may have been some form of factor. I've just never seen so many webs all at once. Any ideas?
Lawn full of spider webs
Most likely the result of 'ballooning' by masses of spiderlings (juvenile spiders). This is a common method of dispersal for several species. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ballooning_(spider)#:~:text=Ballooning%2C%20sometimes%20called%20kiting%2C%20is,air%20currents%20and%20electric%20fields.
That's what I figured, it just looked like all the same species from the type of web. I've seen balooning spiderlings before and often quite a few, as in maybe 100 or so at once. This looked like millions, literally carpeting 3 acres and I could see them even across the street and in my neighbor's yards as well. I was just wondering if this was common for a specific spider.
I was unable to find any species-level information on this topic. This article was of minimal help: https://bugeric.blogspot.com/2014/11/ballooning-spiders.html
It was a really interesting phenomenon. Rain today, so I'm sure the 'carpet' has been destroyed. I even went out last night with a flashlight to see if there were a gazillion spider eyes shining, but I only saw what looked like normal residents here and there.
We've had the warmest November on record. Every day has had a high temperature higher than ever recorded for that day. Stuff is still green and I really need to mow.
Ok, the webs were back today. The yard is just as covered. I sat down on the driveway and waited till one climbed up a blade of grass. If I moved much he scuttled down and disappeared, so that is probably why I couldn't see any the other day. It looks a bit like a tiny wolf spider, but they don't spin like this do they? It's about 1/4" long, but I saw a few that were smaller. This one seemed to be on the bigger end of the size spectrum. Anyway, hopefully, there's enough detail to put a name to my visitors.
It's either a wolfie or a grass spider (Agelenidae). If the spinnerets are clearly visible in a dorsal view (unclear in this image), it would be a grass spider. If not, it would be a wolf spider. Seeing its eyes would be diagnostic as well.
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