Much confusion surrounds the Lake Tawakoni spider web here in North Texas.  Now spanning several acres and growing, I have witnessed this phenomenon firsthand, and I am able to tell you with certainty both what it is and what species is responsible for it.

Unusual outside the tropics, such massive webs not in that area generally can be blamed on vast dispersal events.  To wit, the hatching and scattering of large numbers of spiders can generate enormous web complexes by way of ballooning debris.  Ballooning is when a spider lets out enough web to catch the wind, which then carries it into the sky and to new territory.  If large enough numbers do this in the same general area, both the detritus from their ballooning and the new webs built when they land can create swathes of silk that cover enormous amounts of earth.

This is not one of those cases, however, and I say that with absolute certainty.

ANSWER #1: This is a communal web, not leftovers from an uncommonly large dispersal event.

I witnessed the continued expansion of the web even as I stood in its eerie stillness, my eyes setting upon vivid growth taking place throughout my visit.  Likewise, one of the park rangers gave of her own time to stand with me early this morning as she explained her observations.  Dramatic changes had taken place since yesterday, something she readily pointed out as we strolled casually beneath a canopy of translucent thread.  We stepped carefully betwixt poison ivy and venomous creature in order to take closer looks at what caught her attention.  Both what she said and what I witnessed confirmed this to be a living organism, an abode full of life and activity, one increasing its reach with every passing second.

Given previous photos available from multiple news outlets, one easily can assume some portion of the structure derives from the activity of fall webworms (Hyphantria cunea).  That caterpillar is exceptionally adept at creating web structures in trees that rival and imitate what has been shown of this splendid construction.  To wrap leaves and limbs in silk threading to such a degree is one of their specialties.  I’ve previously explained that North Texas suffered from a glut of fall webworms this year, undoubtedly a result of our bizarre weather, so one might easily assume that organism played a part in this drama.

This is not one of those cases, however, and I say that with absolute certainty.

ANSWER #2: There are no webworms involved in the creation or maintenance of this assembly.

Aside from dispersal, though, impressive creations not quite on this scale are found with regularity outside the tropics.  They result from the combined efforts of social spiders like those originally suggested in this case: Southeastern Social Cobweb Spiders (Anelosimus studiosus).  That species and its various cousins and counterparts rarely, if ever, erect such mammoth fabrications.  Nevertheless, it’s not outside the purview of their abilities.

This is not one of those cases, however, and I say that with absolute certainty.

ANSWER #3: The species responsible for this impressive formation is not one generally understood to be a communal spider.

Finally, all of this leads us to the final solution.

ANSWER #4: This web remains active and growing, a collective endeavor by a single arachnid species: Long-jawed Orb Weavers of the genus Tetragnatha, possibly Tetragnatha guatemalensis or Tetragnatha elongata, if not a variation on either of those themes (one like but not quite the same as those species).

Confirmation of the obvious seems requisite, so allow me to finish with this: There are millions of spiders involved in this captivating enterprise.  One need only stand beneath them and look up to see hundreds within a tiny window of space, a fascinating glimpse of the smallest part of a greater whole.  I walked for hours and chanced upon numerous examples of collective determination.  Innumerable fails to address the reality that can be seen.

When the sun drowns itself in silk, disappearing entirely behind canopies made of minuscule lace, one cannot help but be overwhelmed by the enormity of the situation.  What generally is known as a solitary spider now offers to us a glimpse of what can be accomplished when numbers are irrelevant, when scope means little, and when intent provides more energy than is necessary to move the world.

As for conjecture, allow me a brief episode of guesswork. . .

This species has proliferated due to the rather unusual weather Texas has experienced this year.  Its prey similarly exploded in numbers based on favorable conditions.  Given both hypotheses, our newfound arachnid spectacle begins to make sense.

[images to follow in Part 2, as is more detail on what I witnessed]