This drawing is from a nature journal entry I did back in November of 2020 when I saw this amazing spider web in some grapevines. It was backlit by the sun such that all the threads sparkled with a rainbow of colors, and I felt compelled to try to do a drawing of it and find out more about it.
After a little research, I learned that spiderwebs come in several general patterns, and the one I saw is called an orb web. It has an inner empty circle followed by a small spiral followed by another small gap and this is all followed by a much larger spiral that constitutes most of the rest of the web. However, the large spiral does not go to the very edge of the web. Instead, there is an outer ring that a few threads from the main part of the web hook up to, and this is what attaches the web to its surroundings. The other thing I didn’t realize, that of course makes total sense, is that the threads on both the top and the bottom side curve downwards as if pulled by gravity (duh). You always see them drawn with the threads all curving inward, but this is not the case in the real world.
I also learned that this type of web is often repaired or rebuilt daily – that’s a lot of work for the little spider! Imagine having to rebuild your house every day. The rainbow effect comes from little sticky droplets that dot the web and are used to catch bugs.
Per my journal entry, I never thought it would take me so many tries to draw a spider web. I spent over an hour just trying to make a simple sketch that looked right and still wasn’t totally happy with the end result. Unfortunately, I didn’t take a picture of it, and the web was gone the next day, so this was the only drawing I got. Funny that while I am writing this, I see a spider climbing up the wall!
