What are Wolf Spiders?

Wolf spider crawling on a pile of orange fall leaves - keep spiders away from your home with Johnson Pest Control in TN

Wolf Spiders are common to find across the world. There are thousands of species of Wolf Spiders that you can find around the world. So it is no surprise that people get confused when spotting the wolf spider and confusing them at times with other spiders.

What To Know About Wolf Spiders

  • Wolf Spider carrying its egg sack
    Wolf Spider carrying its egg sack

    Wolf Spiders generally hunt at night. This affects their eye design, which is distinctive in identifying the spider.

  • Wolf Spiders hunt and live alone. They are known to carry their babies on their backs and carry an egg sack with them. But you rarely find more than one at a time.
  • The wolf spider depending on their surroundings and species has developed various ways they hide, live and hunt. Unlike most spiders that spin the web and wait for dinner to show up the wolf spider has been known to hunt down (even chase down) it’s prey.
  • Wolf Spiders do have a venom (as do most spiders) but their bite is not harmful to humans, except for a minor rash. Generally they don’t care about you at all (you’re a bit too big for their appetite) so if you are bitten by a wolf spider it is an accidental occurrence.
  • The wolf spider is a great pest to have around your home to deal with other pests. If you don’t have other pests for them to hunt you are likely not going to find the wolf spider as much.
  • Wolf Spiders have two eyes (eight total) that are unusually large in comparison to the rest of their eyes. This gives them a look that feels almost as if you are staring at something that doesn’t have eight eyes.

Wolf Spiders are often confused for the Brown Recluse spider here in Tennessee. In most cases, the misidentification comes because of markings on some wolf spiders can look similar to the violin marking on the brown recluse. One big distinction between the two spiders is their size. The wolf spider is much larger and thicker than the brown recluse. The set up of the eyes of the recluse and wolf spider is also very different, but who really wants to get that close to a spider to look into their eyes.

A fun thing you can do in your yard (especially with kids) is to go around the yard with a flashlight. The lights will reflect off the wolf spider’s eyes and give a little shine back to you. You can get this same shine during the daytime, but as we mentioned earlier, they are nocturnal hunters and are more easily findable in the evening.

A mother wolf spider keeps all her babies on her back after they hatch from an egg case she carries on her abdomen.
A mother wolf spider keeps all her babies on her back after they hatch from an egg case she carries on her abdomen.

Pictures of Spiders

Last week we highlighted ways to identify the brown recluse spider (Brown Recluse Pictures). This week we thought we’d more pictures of spiders so that you can help friends properly identify the spiders when they post pictures onto their Facebook pages.

Wolf spider in a spider web with insects stuck in the web - keep spiders away from your home with Johnson Pest Control in TNThis is a Wolf Spider. It is generally thicker in the body than other spiders you are going to find around the home. The Wolf Spider is harmless to humans, but can be a real problem if you try and kill one that has a few hundred baby spiders on it’s back. Unless these are sitting on your favorite chair it is suggested to let them be.
Cellar Spider and Coin

This is Cellar Spider. Harmless to humans you will likely find these, well, in the cellar or crawl space of the house. They are small in size and can be found in bunches.

Black Widow Spider | Pictures of Spiders Black Widow Spider | Pictures of Spiders

The Black Widow Spider is one of the three poisonous spiders we have in the United States. The Brown Recluse is one of the other ones which we have in the state of Tennessee. The Black Widow generally is a loaner, so if you find one it is unlikely you will be finding others. They will not attack you unless they are provoked or intruded on. If they do bite you then you will want to seek medical attention. The Black Widow is very distinct with its dark black color and hour glass shaped red markings on their backsides. If you can confidently get rid of a Black Widow, without risking getting bit then feel free to do so. Otherwise consult a pest professional.House Spider | Pictures of Spider

House Spider | Pictures of Spider

The House Spider is a spider that you would find, well, in the house. Nothing that fancy about the House Spider. They will be setting up shop and hunting around your house to catch some food to eat. Humans, however, are far from the house spiders menu. They can freak you out, and your kids, but they are harmless.

Orb weaver spider in a web - Keep spiders away from your home with Johnson Pest Control in Sevierville TNThe Orb Spider (there are many versions of the Orb Spider) come in lots of different colors and patterns. Generally harmless to humans you will likely find the Orb Spider outside in the garden. You could fall victim to walking through one of their spider webs as you move through some bushes while doing your weekly gardening activities. Orb Spiders are overall helpful to the outside of your house as they feed on a number of the bugs that you would rather not have to fly around your head.

So there are some pictures of spiders that you will find in and around your home this season. If you see a huge amount of any spider then you will want to call for a consultation and some services. Having a spider here is perfectly normal, having a few hundred, well, that is just downright scary.