Spiderzrule

Here's some photos sent in by viewers. Wolf Spiders are large, hairy spiders which are usually patterned with a mixture of black, gray, and brown. Wolf spiders, especially large ones, look very similar to spiders in the Pisauridae family (nursery web and fishing spiders), but wolf spiders are usually more robust, with shorter legs. There are more than 2000 wolf spider species. Wolf spiders have 8 eyes. As with all spiders, wolf spiders have 8 legs, 2 body parts (cephalothorax and abdomen), and fang-like mouthparts called "chelicerae." Like all spiders, young wolf spiders hatch from eggs and look like tiny adults. They shed their skin as they grow. Most wolf spiders live for several years. In many species, female wolf spiders lay dozens of eggs at one time and wrap them in a large ball of web. The female will then carry the carry the eggsac with them until the spiderlings hatch. Upon hatching the, spiderlings will live on the mothers back for a few weeks until they are large enough to hunt on their own. Wolf spiders are active hunters that patrol the ground for insects, other spiders, and similar creatures. They do not use webs to capture prey. They live by the thousands in leaf litter and grassy areas. Some wolf spiders build small burrows and defend a territory, others are free-roaming. Because they are so numerous, and such voracious predators, wolf spiders are a very important part of any ecosystem in which they occur. Wolf spiders are not normally pests, but they often wander into homes. They can bite, but they are not considered dangerous. Wolf spiders look similar to brown recluses, and are often killed because they resemble these dangerous spiders. With a little practice, it is easy to tell the difference between wolf spiders and brown recluses. There are several types of wolf spiders and I have tried to group them accordingly below. All photos are copyright to their owners and may not be reproduced without permission. Please choose a section.

Unidentified Spiders 2012	Unidentified Spiders 2011	Unidentified Spiders 2010
Unidentified Spiders 2009 (1)	Unidentified Spiders 2009 (2)	Unidentified Spiders 2008 (1)
Unidentified Spiders 2008 (2)	Unidentified Spiders 2007 (1)	Unidentified Spiders 2007 (2)
Unidentified Spiders 2007 (3)	Unidentified Spiders 2006 (1)	Unidentified Spiders 2006 (2)
Unidentified Spiders 2006 (3)	Unidentified Spiders 2005 (2)	Unidentified Spiders 2005 (3)
Unidentified Spiders 2005 (1)	Unidentified Spiders 2004 (1)	Unidentified Spiders 2004 (2)
Unidentified Spiders 2003	Unidentified Spiders 2002	Unidentified Spiders 2001
Spiders in Amber	Closeups	Ant Mimicking Spiders
Argiopes/St. Andrew's Cross	Barn Funnel Weaving Spider	Basilica Spiders
Bird Dropping Spiders	Black House Spiders	Bolas Spiders
Brown Recluse Spiders	Candy Stripe Spiders	Common House Spider
Crab Spiders	Cyclosa Conica	Daddy Long Legs
Daring Jumping Spiders	Fishing Spiders	Funnel Web (Aus)
Furrow Spider	Garden Orb Weavers	Giant House Spider
Golden Orb Weavers	Grass spiders/Funnel Weavers	Ground Spiders
Hacklemesh Weavers	Hobo Spiders	Huntsman Spiders
Jewelled Spiders	Jumping Spiders	Ladybird Spiders
Leaf Curling Spiders	Long Jawed Orb Weavers	Lynx Spiders
Marbled Orb Weavers	Micarathena	Mouse Spiders
Mygalomorphs	Net casting Spider	Nursery Web Spiders
Parson Spiders	Pirate Spiders	Pseudoscorpion
Purseweb Spider	Redback Spiders	Red Spotted Ant Mimic Spiders
Running Crab Spiders	Scorpion Spiders	Solfugids/Camel Spiders
Southern House Spiders	Spider Tats	Spitting Spiders
Steatoda	Tailless Whip Scorpions	Tarantulas
Trapdoor Spiders	Venusta Orchard Spiders	Wandering Spiders
White Tailed Spiders	Widow Spiders	Wolf Spiders
Woodlouse Hunters	Yellow & Broad faced Sac Spiders

Other Wolf spiders (1)	Other Wolf spiders (2)	Other Wolf spiders (3)
Other Wolf spiders (4)	Other Wolf spiders (5)	Other Wolf spiders (6)
Other Wolf spiders (7)
Carolina Wolf Spiders	Rabid Wolf Spiders	Burrowing Wolf Spiders

BURROWING WOLF SPIDERS

The Burrowing Wolf Spider is a large Wolf Spider. It is often difficult spider to see because it is found in sandy areas and it lives in a burrow underground, and is usually hidden from view. Look for these cute furry spiders at the mouths of their silk-lined burrows in sand dunes when the weather is nice not too hot and not too cold. The Burrowing Wolf Spider has a body up to 20 mm long, not including the eight hairy legs. The body is grey and speckled in black just like the sand it hides in. This dune predator lies in wait near the top of its burrow until something small and unwary wanders by. The spider seldom leaves its protective burrow.
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Reply: This is probably a burrowing wolf spider of some sort - glen 10 October, 2009: Hi Please would you be kind enough to identify this spider for me (two photos attached)? It was found on a wall in southern Cyprus, where it stayed without moving for most of the day. I would be really grateful for your help. Kind regards Trisha.

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Reply: This is a wolf spider - glen 16 October, 2009: we are pretty sure this is a Wolf Spider, but would like to verify it. We have never come across one so large - it was moving across our patio in the leaves. It's the largest spider we have ever come across here in Ontario, Canada. Are you able to confirm? it is missing a leg on it's left side. Thanks Tina Click for a close-up.
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Reply: This is a wolf spider - glen 14 October, 2009: hey glen, i attached a spider picture that i found outside my house in massachusets. can you inform me what spider it is ? it seems abit big for a normal garden spider. please let me know, would be a huge help. Click for a close-up of the eyes which show the typical wolf spider eye pattern.
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28 June, 2009: Buddy of mine said he found this wandering around a cabin we built last year. I didn’t see it, but he got some pictures. I know they aren’t good top view, but was hoping you could help identify. We live in Southern Indiana. I have never seen anything like this around. Buddy said it was like 6” or better in size? Thanks Bill

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13 June, 2009: This Spider was spotted in the town of Williston Fla. at night on the side of a house in April of this year. Good luck. Michael
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Reply: This is a wolf spider. glen 17 March, 2009: I found this in my pool. Approximately 2 " in length. Thank you for your time. Travis


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26 October, 2007: I live in Havelock NC and I was at work one day and this spider came across my arm and down to my hand! I was wondering if you could help me out on the identity of it! Thank You! Robert, NC
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Reply: Yes that is a wolf spider, probably a "burrowing wolf spider," a Geolycosa species. Nathan 21 September, 2006: I live on Cape Cod and found this spider on the beach. Is it a Wolf Spider? I looked at the pictures on your site and it does look like the same family, except the marking on the abdomen is different. I would like to submit the photo into competiton at my photo club, but I need the name for its Thanks for you help Click for a larger view.
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Reply: You have a Geolycosa sp. "burrowing wolfspider." Quite harmless. Nathan 21 July, 2006: Hello, I'm emailing you from Western Oklahoma. I'm not from here, but from the day I moved here I've wondered what kind of spider this is. I've never been able to find out, and can only guess. Quick guesses say possibly something in the "trapdoor" spider family, though it does not use a trapdoor. Just a hole with bits of leaf, twigs etc webed around the circumference of the burrow. They can quite large as you can see, and are very mean if provoked; you can actually hear their fangs grinding down on a stick or twig, and they do have very large fangs. Can't imagine how bad that would hurt! Anyway, I know you get mountain loads of emails but hopefully you can at least post this to your site to share with other enthusiasts, and possiby in time, give an idea as to what the species is. P.S. The tiny one is the baby version of the big, pregnant adult female shown there.



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