Knowledgebase
Spider ID #488150
Asked October 02, 2018, 1:53 PM EDT
Cheboygan County Michigan
Expert Response
Hello,
That looks like a Wolf Spider (Family: Lycosidae).
Wolf spiders aka
lycosids are common spiders that feed on insects and other spiders. They are not known to be aggressive, but they
will bite in self-defense if handled roughly.
Their venom is not particularly dangerous.
Most lycosids do not
construct snares (webs) but hunt their prey on the move like wolves do (hence
their common name). Some live in burrows
in the ground and ambush their prey as it crawls past the opening of the
burrow. Big wolf spiders are usually a
shock to people who are unfamiliar with them because of their large size and
some have mistaken them for an escaped pet tarantula. Others are concerned that they might be the
brown recluse spider which is not known to occur in Michigan. Most wolf spiders hunt at night but
occasionally they can be found during the day.
Female wolf spiders carry their young on their backs for a considerable
time after they hatch. Wolf spiders normally
enter the house near ground level and are normally encountered in basements,
crawlspaces, and breezeways. These
spiders occur in very low numbers, and usually homeowners encounter only one or
two of them.
Howard