What is this?

Could be these!

Foliage webbing spider!

I blieve there are sme spiders that nest like that ...... but my money would be on hairy catapillars.

Either way ..... leave it alone, stay away and don't camp near it.

cheers

Notso has nailed it, first go. Used to see a lot of them throughout the urban areas and wheatbelt of W.A. when I was much younger - but their numbers seem to have declined in the last few decades - probably due to excessive clearing, urban encroachment and fires.

Their habitat is supposed to be Australia-wide - but I've seen a whole lot more of these nests in Southern W.A., than in Northern W.A.

They're only a small spider and not aggressive - but their toxicity is unknown, so it doesn't pay to poke them.
They seem to be quite a retiring spider and you don't see them exposed very often, unlike some other spiders such as black house spiders and redbacks.
However, their genus is actually related to the black house spider.

Here's links to a couple of sites with more info and some pictures ...

Phryganoporus Candidus Spider

Find A Spider Guide - Phryganoporus candidus

I recall reading some time back where a spider expert said there could be up to several thousand species and sub-species of spiders in Australia that are currently unnamed, uncatalogued, and therefore not studied.

Seven new species of spider recently discovered in the NT

Did you find any trapdoor spiders out there? They're common to the wheatbelt, the Goldfields and the Eastern woodland regions of W.A. - and the work they put into their home is nothing short of amazing. I can honestly say I've never seen a trapdoor spider actually digging - they must do it at night.

Cheers, Ron.

Thanks guys, we stayed well clear of it! I've never seen anything like it before. The hairy caterpillars you talk of, are the the ones that get in a big mass group on gum trees, and spit? Don't think it was those ones.. The web was very thick, main support web was like a thick rope holding the ball mass between the branches.. This thing was only a meter or so off the ground.. Thanks for the replies.. Cheers. Odog