# What kind of spider is this? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 5, 2005, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655 "2005-08-05T01:35:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/1 "2005-08-05T01:35:47Z")
Just curious. I found [this guy](http://pw1.netcom.com/~heliboy/spider.jpg) hanging out under a rafter on the patio just outside my back door. It’s been there for hours. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/2 "2005-08-05T02:21:48Z")
Oh – Location: 48° 56’ N, 122° 45’ W That’s Birch Bay, WA; just about as far north and west as you can get and still be in the lower 48. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/3 "2005-08-05T02:27:00Z")
I’m not arachnologist, but it looks like some sort of orb-weaving spider to me. I’ve heard spiders like that called by the generic name of St. Andrews Cross spiders, but i’m sure someone will be along soon who knows more about this sort of thing than i do. Looking through the 16 pages of orb-weaving spiders [here](http://bugguide.net/node/view/1972/bgimage?from=0), i didn’t find any that were identical to yours, but there are a few that look quite similar. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/4 "2005-08-05T02:36:10Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > I’m not arachnologist, but it looks like some sort of orb-weaving spider to me. That’s what I thought as well, but it’s not in a web. This area crawls with orb-weavers, and this one would be the first I’ve seen that isn’t in a web. We also have these other spiders of similar size that live on the ground. I usually see them when I move the trash can or something. They’re dark grey and have little bumps on their backs. I’ll try to get a photo next time I see one. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/5 "2005-08-05T02:46:23Z")
Looks like a Male Orb-Weaver to me. A male of the “Great Salt Lake” spiders perhaps. compare to this: [http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://bugguide.net/images/raw/XRJZ0RRH5RZH2RFZJLPL3L9LKRELRZNLIZCL0Z2L7R3Z6R0H7RFZ2R1L7ZKH4RCZGRHHGRRH7Z0H.jpg&imgrefurl=http://bugguide.net/node/view/13973/bgimage&h=560&w=487&sz=155&tbnid=pzmTA1VsFmYJ:&tbnh=131&tbnw=113&hl=en&start=11&prev=/images%3Fq%3DMale%2BOrb-Weaver%2B%26svnum%3D100%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DG](http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://bugguide.net/images/raw/XRJZ0RRH5RZH2RFZJLPL3L9LKRELRZNLIZCL0Z2L7R3Z6R0H7RFZ2R1L7ZKH4RCZGRHHGRRH7Z0H.jpg&imgrefurl=http://bugguide.net/node/view/13973/bgimage&h=560&w=487&sz=155&tbnid=pzmTA1VsFmYJ:&tbnh=131&tbnw=113&hl=en&start=11&prev=/images%3Fq%3DMale%2BOrb-Weaver%2B%26svnum%3D100%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DG) or this [http://bugguide.net/images/raw/XRJZ0RRH5RZH2RFZJLPL3L9LKRELRZNLIZCL0Z2L7R3Z6R0H7RFZ2R1L7ZKH4RCZGRHHGRRH7Z0H.jpg](http://bugguide.net/images/raw/XRJZ0RRH5RZH2RFZJLPL3L9LKRELRZNLIZCL0Z2L7R3Z6R0H7RFZ2R1L7ZKH4RCZGRHHGRRH7Z0H.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/779978/32.png) [@Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amazon_Floozy_Goddess)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/6 "2005-08-05T03:36:23Z")
It’s lovely. I had a Wolf spider on my wall a few days ago. he was pretty happy to be let back outside. (You’ve probably guessed that I’m not afraid of spiders. ;)) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/7 "2005-08-05T03:39:42Z")
> [@Amazon Floozy Goddess](#): > > (You’ve probably guessed that I’m not afraid of spiders. ;)) I would hope that arachniphobes understand that the link is to a photo. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bb73d2/32.png) [@Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dark_Side_of_the_Floyd)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/8 "2005-08-05T04:21:14Z")
> [@Johnny L.A.](#): > > I would hope that arachniphobes understand that the link is to a photo. 😉 GAAaaah… ---
**Author:** ![Ms\_Macphisto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b487fb/32.png) [@Ms\_Macphisto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms_Macphisto)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/9 "2005-08-05T05:28:54Z")
> [@Johnny L.A.](#): > > That’s what I thought as well, but it’s not in a web. This area crawls with orb-weavers, and this one would be the first I’ve seen that isn’t in a web. I’ve seen spiders similar to that hanging out in webs though. The garden at my parents’ place in White Rock is full of them, and since I rather doubt that spiders care about things like borders, I’d be willing to bet that you’ve got the same kinds of bugs in Birch Bay. > [@](#): > > We also have these other spiders of similar size that live on the ground. I usually see them when I move the trash can or something. They’re dark grey and have little bumps on their backs. I’ll try to get a photo next time I see one. Are those the really fuzzy ones that can jump like you wouldn’t believe? I’m not generally arachnophobic, but those things give me the creeps. ---
**Author:** ![wonder9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c57346/32.png) [@wonder9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonder9)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 12:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/10 "2005-08-05T12:29:28Z")
Looks like some of the wolf spiders we have here in North Carolina. Here’s one link to spiders in your neck of the woods. > **[Former UW-Extension](https://www.wisconsin.edu/uwex/)** > > UW-Extension has been restructured into UW-Madison and UW System Administration Divisions moved to UW-Madison Cooperative Extension is now known as UW-Madison Division of Extension. If you have questions related to agriculture, food preservation,... They do bite, and it hurts alot when they do. But they’re great hunters. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/11 "2005-08-05T15:02:36Z")
It looks like a wolf spider, but it’s kind of small for that. ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Cymbeline](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_cymbeline/32/9244_2.png) [@Green\_Cymbeline](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Cymbeline)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/315655/12 "2005-08-05T15:23:52Z")
Check out this page: [http://muextension.missouri.edu/explore/wildthing/orbweaver.htm](http://muextension.missouri.edu/explore/wildthing/orbweaver.htm) I think it’s definitely some sort of orb weaver…