# What kind of spider is this? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 24, 2006, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044 "2006-08-24T14:47:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/1 "2006-08-24T14:47:42Z")
Warning to arachnophobes: large close-ups of a spider are linked herein. I caught this feller (honey?) on my bedroom curtain last night: [spider](http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/6765/spidertoprq5.jpg) [close-up](http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/7199/spidercloseis1.jpg) [underside](http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/5899/spiderbellyud7.jpg) I’m not especially concerned; I find spiders like this (or maybe the same one over and over, heh) in my house all the time and I haven’t had a problem with them. They’re usually about this size, sometimes a little larger, occasionally a lot larger. It’s startling to see them dashing up a wall or across the floor; they’re fast little buggers. But since I’m not worried about them, I just catch 'em and stick 'em down in the basement. (I’ve heard that going outside is a death sentence for house-adapted spiders, so I don’t put 'em out.) Even though I’ve been seeing them for years, I’ve never known exactly what kind of spider this is, and I’m definitely curious. They’re almost like mini-pets at this point. They’re only marginally less trainable than my cat (;)), and seeing them up close, the delicate pattern and fine hairs are actually kind of pretty. I’ve tried looking in books and on websites for identification, but have had no luck. So… what kind of arachnid is this, exactly? I’d like to get to know my housemates a little better. Location: Pacific Northwest. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/2 "2006-08-24T14:50:24Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > [underside](http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/5899/spiderbellyud7.jpg) By the way, arachnophobes definitely don’t want to click on this link, because it’s too easy to interpret the image as capturing that split-second moment where you happen to look up and realize that this dude is banzai-ing straight down onto your face. Just a word of warning. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Iggins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Iggins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggins)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/3 "2006-08-24T14:51:00Z")
I believe it’s “Non aggressive house spider”. At least that’s what the exterminator told me. I’m also in the PNW (Beaverton). If I recall correctly, the little bands around the leg distinguish it from a poisionous spider. ---
**Author:** ![Iggins](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Iggins](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggins)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/4 "2006-08-24T14:53:10Z")
Oh, and here’s another creepy page for arachnopobes: > **[Spider Identification Chart - Venomous or Dangerous?](https://www.termite.com/spider-identification.html)** > > Spider Identification Chart - Venomous or Dangerous? ---
**Author:** ![nonacetone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonacetone/32/2819_2.png) [@nonacetone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nonacetone)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/5 "2006-08-24T14:58:34Z")
I’d say it’s a Wolf Spider. But, I could be wrong. ---
**Author:** ![TwoTrouts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a9adbd/32.png) [@TwoTrouts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwoTrouts)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/6 "2006-08-24T15:23:49Z")
It’s a wold spider. They can get pretty big! [Link](http://www.petbugs.com/caresheets/gallery/H-carolinensis.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![TwoTrouts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a9adbd/32.png) [@TwoTrouts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TwoTrouts)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/7 "2006-08-24T15:25:03Z")
> [@TwoTrouts](#): > > It’s a wold spider. They can get pretty big! [Link](http://www.petbugs.com/caresheets/gallery/H-carolinensis.jpg) WOLF, not “wold”! dammit! ---
**Author:** ![nonacetone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonacetone/32/2819_2.png) [@nonacetone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nonacetone)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/8 "2006-08-24T16:00:36Z")
Our house is full of those damn Wolf Spiders! The cats have a big time with them (they like to bat them around. Sort of like a living-toy type thing), but I just usually scream, make a weak attempt at killing them, then go find someone who will get the job done for me. I’ve not been bitten by any…so far…watch. I’ve just jinxed myself. The cats seem to have no problem with them, either. The dogs seem to think the spiders are crunchy or something, since they chew them up when they catch one. They don’t have a problem with them, either. I think I’m the only one with issues. ---
**Author:** ![Jodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@Jodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jodi)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/9 "2006-08-24T16:01:29Z")
. . . And they will [bite](http://www.calpoison.org/public/spiders.html#5) you, in case you were wondering. House acclimated or not, any spider I find is going outside and can thank its little spider gods I didn’t give it a burial at sea in the porcelain pond. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/10 "2006-08-24T17:42:26Z")
> [@Iggins](#): > > Oh, and here’s another creepy page for arachnopobes: > > [Spider Identification Chart - Venomous or Dangerous?](http://www.termite.com/spider-identification.html) Cool link, you can get a free spider identification chart here! Plus first aid info. ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/11 "2006-08-24T23:10:33Z")
I live in Philomath (a little south of Portland), and we get them all the time, too. I don’t think it’s a wolf spider – they only get about as big as the one pictured, and they never get the large body you associate with wolf ones. **Cervaise** if you keep them as pets you can have mine…if you can get them before the cats eat them. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 24, 2006, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/12 "2006-08-24T23:26:29Z")
> [@Jodi](#): > > …thank its little spider gods… “Hail Shelob, full of grace, the arachnid is with thee…” ---
**Author:** ![DrunkOnion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3ab097/32.png) [@DrunkOnion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrunkOnion)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2006, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/13 "2006-08-25T08:15:58Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > Warning to arachnophobes: large close-ups of a spider are linked herein. > > I caught this feller (honey?) on my bedroom curtain last night: > > [spider](http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/6765/spidertoprq5.jpg) > [close-up](http://img221.imageshack.us/img221/7199/spidercloseis1.jpg) > [underside](http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/5899/spiderbellyud7.jpg) > > I’m not especially concerned; I find spiders like this (or maybe the same one over and over, heh) in my house all the time and I haven’t had a problem with them. They’re usually about this size, sometimes a little larger, occasionally a lot larger. It’s startling to see them dashing up a wall or across the floor; they’re fast little buggers. But since I’m not worried about them, I just catch 'em and stick 'em down in the basement. (I’ve heard that going outside is a death sentence for house-adapted spiders, so I don’t put 'em out.) > > Even though I’ve been seeing them for years, I’ve never known exactly what kind of spider this is, and I’m definitely curious. They’re almost like mini-pets at this point. They’re only marginally less trainable than my cat (;)), and seeing them up close, the delicate pattern and fine hairs are actually kind of pretty. I’ve tried looking in books and on websites for identification, but have had no luck. > > So… what kind of arachnid is this, exactly? I’d like to get to know my housemates a little better. > > Location: Pacific Northwest. > > Thanks! I think it depends on where you are located. The spider you pictured is called a wood spider in Ohio…found in any wood pile…What we call a wolf spider is much bigger and very hairy… Both are called dead if I see them… ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2006, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/14 "2006-08-25T14:30:18Z")
> [@TimeWinder](#): > > **Cervaise** if you keep them as pets you can have mine…if you can get them before the cats eat them. Sure, send 'em up. 🙂 For whatever reason, my cat isn’t particularly interested in munching these guys. He’ll snap to attention when he sees the movement, but as soon as he recognizes what it is, he does the cat equivalent of shrugging and going back to his magazine. Maybe he ate one once and had a _ptui ptui_ reaction. Not being a bug-eater myself, I don’t know what they’re like, but I’d imagine a venomous critter would probably be fairly bitter. Now, those big fat late-summer moths, on the other hand; he’ll tear the house apart to catch 'em. Doesn’t even play with 'em, either. Just leap, snatch, crunch, and gone. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2006, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/15 "2006-08-25T19:01:07Z")
When I was about 12 a spider about 1/4 inch long was walking on my arm. I said live and let live. When it got about 1 inch from my elbow it gave me a bite I still remember. I live in Michigan and critters are safe. Man that hurt, After I ran cold water on my arm I spent hours looking for that thing. I was going to squish it and like doing it.It was a hairy little thing. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2006, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/16 "2006-08-25T20:01:35Z")
It’s a sex spider. Just another fuckin’ spiderSmash it with a rock. ---
**Author:** ![Stealth\_Potato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Stealth\_Potato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stealth_Potato)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2006, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-spider-is-this/370044/17 "2006-08-25T21:08:00Z")
Your spider looks exactly like this [female hobo spider](http://www.nps.gov/public_health/inter/graphics/hobo_female.jpg). They have a nasty bite that can cause significant pain and local necrosis, as well as headaches and other nasty stuff. You definitely want to be careful around these guys. I understand they do look very similar to a non-poisonous house spider, but it would probably be best to be careful all the same.