‘What a big belly you have!’

As I have said before, October is a very strange month. The other day I was greeted with a large, round, female spider nearly ready to lay her eggs. This particular spider is more at home in a bush but somehow had gained access to my kitchen. Perhaps she senses that there is a very, very cold spell on the way as they are not noted for venturing indoors very often. Time will tell … I hope that it isn’t a portend to extreme weather …

Araneus quadratus - female full of eggs