Description of the Burrowing Wolf Spider

Burrowing wolf spiders are nocturnal hunters and, unlike most spiders, don't build a web. They are found throughout the U.S. and Canada, in desert scrubs and woodlands. You can also find them in homes and gardens, burrowed beneath debris and leaves. Their bite is not lethal but can be painful and poisonous enough to require medical attention.

Appearance

• The appearance of burrowing wolf spiders is menacing. Eight long legs lined in brownish-gray hair connect to an hourglass-shaped abdomen. Their eyes are black and peer out from the top of their heads, like protruding headlights. Adults grow to half an inch to an inch in length with a pattern similar to a union jack appearing on their backs. Because of their appearance, burrowing wolf spiders are often confused with tarantulas.

Eating Habits

• Burrowing wolf spiders are hunters that spend most of their time looking for food. They move quickly and sometimes can't be seen as they lurk in dark crevices. Their diet consists mostly of insects and other spiders. Burrowing wolf spiders, unlike other spiders, do not use a web to catch their prey. Instead they simply swoop and grab.

Gestation and Life Span

• Female burrowing wolf spiders will often lay dozens of eggs. They wrap the eggs in a web ball which they carry on their backs for nine to 27 days. When the gestation period is over, spiderlings hatch and begin crawling around their mother. For a few more weeks they will continue to frequent their mother's back until they can hunt on their own. Burrowing wolf spiders can live up to three years.

Habitat

• Burrowing wolf spiders vary in where they choose to live. Some are found in clusters of thousands under piles of dead leaves or in fields. Others stay in one place with just a few other wolf spiders, and some live alone, usually burrowed under some object. Often the wolf spider will protect its burrowed retreat by a thin layer of silk at the point of entrance.