The February Spider of the Month (SOTM) is this festive silver marsh spider (Leucauge festiva) in the water orb-web spider family (Tetragnathidae), photographed by Cecile Roux in her garden in Riebeek West, Western Cape.
Regarding this find, Cecile said:
“Despite their colourful appearance and large webs, these spiders are well camouflaged in a garden with many colours and textures. I wasn’t aware of this spider until I walked into her web while photographing pollinators in a ‘wild’ part of my garden. I only noticed her when she scrambled onto a nearby weed, where I quickly took the photo. This is also the reason for the slightly unusual posture; Leucauge usually hangs upside down in their webs, making it hard to appreciate the colourful dorsal sides!”
While these spiders spin orb webs, they are in a different family from those we commonly refer to as “orb-web spiders” in the very large family Araneidae. They differ from the Araneidae in that the centre of their web has a hole, or a missing hub, among other differences. They are frequently found in well-watered gardens and humid areas, often near water. Their webs can range from vertical to horizontal, but mostly at a sharp angle to the ground.
They are also sometimes called masked silver marsh (or vlei) spiders due to the mask-like pattern on their abdomen. I always say that if you flip that “mask” upside down, you can see an alien in a Santa Claus costume and with a British bobby/custodian helmet 
Leucauge means “white dawn”, from the Greek leukos (white) and augḗ (dawn), probably because the spiders are often white/silver and because they mostly spin their webs before dawn. The specific epithet “festiva” (festive) is most likely due to their bright colours, and possibly a reference to the festive season’s red, green, and white colours.
Described by Scottish zoologist Adam White in 1841, the genus Leucauge contains 182 recorded species, with nine species recorded in South Africa. However, it was Charles Darwin who suggested the genus name when he collected the first specimen in 1832, which was eventually named Leucauge argyrobapta. The genus has not yet been revised in South Africa.
From 189 people who voted, Cecile’s photo received 83 (44%) votes. This is her second SOTM. Congratulations, Cecile, and thanks to everyone who voted!