This mornings garden bug is a St Andrews Cross Spider. Named because of the bands of silk that form a shape similar to the cross St Andrew was reportedly crucified on. Biologists have several ideas on the purpose of the cross... to stabilise the web, camouflage from predators or to attract prey. Apparently it reflects UV light which might attract insects. It was 6.30am when I took the photo so the rest of the web can't be seen because there's no sunlight reflecting off it. I'll try again later to see if I can get it with the rest of the web visible.
Apologies for my dirty fence.
Apologies for my dirty fence.