I have been fascinated by these handsome spiders since I was very young. I always made a sort of pet of them, and always named them Charlotte. Obvious, I know, but they are Writing Spiders after all so the name is perfect. When they build their web they keep moving it until they find a spot that supplies plenty of insects. When she built her web right where I wanted it I started feeding her the large grasshoppers that were eating my basil. The basil was happy, I was happy because I got to study her and take plenty of pictures while sitting on my porch, and Charlotte was happy - and fat! Charlotte came to a bad end, killed by an Asian hornet. I was rather attached to her, but normally I am accepting of the fact that predation is natural. However in this case I am not, since Asian hornets are an invasive species, brought here by human action. The native wasps eat spiders all the time, but none of them will attack a mature female Writing Spider because the spider is just too large. Charlotte tried to put up a fight, but Asian hornets start aggressively using their large powerful mandibles to eat their prey at the moment of contact. I could have grabbed a camera, but instead got a .22 caliber pistol loaded with rat shot and vaporized both of them, as she was literally being eaten alive. Asian hornets have had a very bad effect on many native species. They like to take over the nests of Piliated woodpeckers, an endangered bird, often killing and eating the bird if the nest is occupied. They will attack -and sometimes kill - people who stray too close to their nest. I have seen first-hand a group of them wipe out an entire beehive in less than ten minutes, cutting bees in half with a single bite. I have to accept that they are here to stay, since there is no way to eradicate them. But I don’t have to like it.