Spider that looks like a moth or a leaf-what is it?

[curiousbb]

There is a spider (actually several throughout the yard), they look like moths or perhaps even a piece of leaf. I have no idea what they are called. I have tried to take a picture and they keep coming out blurry. I guess I am getting too close.
Anyway- they look like they have something on their backs that looks almost like wings and it black with white stripes.
Anyone have any idea? Where could I learn more?
Any books that show different kinds of spiders????

Thanks

BTW- I'm a newbie!

 

[cacoseraph]

a location would probably be helpful

 

[curiousbb]

My back yard in Dayton, Ohio

 

[cacoseraph]

can you describe any webbing the spider has produced?


regarding taking pics... first, does your cam have a macro(flower) mode? if so, engage that. second... it sounds silly, but taking pics through magnifying glasses actually works pretty darn well once you get the hang of it. particularily with a nice glass double lens magnifier. if you are bored you can experiment a little bit. this is the method i used to take er, somewhat acceptable pics using my brother's RAZR cellphone

 

[Johnnyster]

A spider with wings?...he he

Youve probably got every spider peep in here looking that up. Pictures will really help. Maybe it's not a spider,,, here are some possibilities

Praying Mantis ?

Wolf Spider??

? ?? ?

 

[curiousbb]

Yes- my camera actually does have "flower" mode/setting. Perhaps I will take some more pics using that.
I am going to try to post some of the pics I did take.

At any rate, if I'm able to- the blob in the pics is the spider. As you will see, it's out of focus.

 

[curiousbb]

Here one last pic:

 

[John Apple]

Looks to be from the shape the spiney backed orb weaver
M. gracilis

 

[MEXICOYA415]

Looks like bigfoot.

 

[curiousbb]

Here's some more and better pics

Hope these are more helpful.
There are a few where the spider is on the tree.
Oh I was wrong also about the back being black with white stripes. More like yellow with black or gray spots.

 

[John Apple]

it's what I said it was

 

[cacoseraph]

nice work John


@BB... your camera was having trouble focusing on the spider when it was on its web. what you can do is trick the camera by focusing on something else, like the tree bark while holding your camera about 12" away from the bark... press the trigger button down halfway, to make the cam autofocus... but DON'T take the picture.... now that you have a nice 12" autofocus locked in, you can move the cam to point at the spider in teh web... and NOW finish pushing the trigger button down to take a picture with the tricky autofocus. hardly any cams are smart enough to do a bug on a web with a noisy background by themselves

 

[buthus]

A lot of new cameras have settings for autofocus. Usually there is a setting for dead center (the crosshairs). If you have such a feature and your focus is not on center, change it and give that a try.

 

[curiousbb]

I found it!

I see someone said it might be or looked like a M. gracilis. Well they were right.

It's a spiny-back spider or Micrathena gracilis

Here's a site with better pics than mine.

http://www.fcps.edu/islandcreekes/ecology/spined_micrathena.htm