Argiope

noun

Ar·​gi·​o·​pe

ärˈjīə(ˌ)pē

1

: a genus (family Araneidae, the orb weavers) of large spiders that produce wheel-shaped webs, often have brightly-colored markings on the abdomen, and include the common black and yellow garden spider (A. aurantia)

All Argiope species have two fundamentally different attack patterns.

—Michael H. Robinson, Smithsonian, October 1987

2

argiope plural argiopes : a spider of the genus Argiope

It's especially rewarding to visit the [goldenrod] patches early on dew-drenched mornings for the elaborate webs of the orb-weavers, particularly the big black-and-yellow argiopes, sometimes called garden spiders.

—Ken Weber, Providence Journal, 17 Sept. 2005

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Greek Argiopē, nymph who was mother of the mythical bard Thamyris

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