Leucauge venusta (Orchard Orbweaver)
I know that not everyone is particularly fond of spiders, so I apologize if this creeps you out. I actually don’t mind them in their place. Mind you, when walking through the woods, my face is decidedly not their place. But outdoors, eating other insects, they are good friends. They can also be quite beautiful and surprisingly colorful, to say nothing of the fabulous webs they often spin.
This is an orchard orbweaver (Leucauge venusta, with venusta being the Latin for beautiful), and they are quite common in our area (and I’ve never actually seen on indoors, which is just as well). This one is only about 8 inches off the ground, which made getting down under it for a photograph a bit of a challenge, but I think it’s turned out pretty well.