Cool Spider...

[DARK30]

I got this guy hanging around in the wildflowers...looks like it could eat a finch!

[Friar_Tuck]

they are very cool, their name is simply a "yellow & black garden spider"..

[Dotch]

Very cool spider DARK although your guy is actually a gal, a female yellow garden spider. These also go by black and yellow garden spider, golden garden spider, corn spider or writing spider among others. They're not unusual for the area although they seem to be becoming more common here in MN than they once were. Not all that long ago it seemed like I found them most commonly in the states of OH, IN and IL. We're seeing them increasingly in fields here in MN, especially soybean fields. They eat all kinds of insects and wrap them up for eating later, usually within a few hours of having been killed by the spider's venom. They're considered harmless to humans fortunately and are fascinating to watch when something flies into that orb shaped web.