I often go outside at night to feed cats and I wear a cap with an LED light on the brim. Besides the cats' eyes, I can see all the little spider eyes. It's really interesting.
Once in a former house (Illinois), I trundled downstairs in the near-dark and saw something on the stairs. Being a neat freak, I reached to pick it up. Sixth sense kicked in at the last moment and my hand stopped about a inch above it. I turned on the light instead, and behold: one big-a** wolf spider. I caught it under a glass and put it outside.
"What's the likelihood of my wife coming downstairs in the morning and finding me catatonic on the grass, curled up in the fetal position, and covered in a light misting of morning dew?" Yep, that would be MY question!
Wolf spiders have the best eyesight of all spiders. When these guys look at you - they are really seeing you. Often people complain that they feel that they are 'sizing them up', but they really aren't. They know you are too big to be a meal. You have plenty in California. PLENTY. Sorry. I love these guys, I currently have one living in a nook beside my toilet. I just have to be careful that my pussycat doesn't find him.
Vanessa- "Wolf spiders have the best eyesight of all spiders."
Really? are you sure? I was pretty sure it's jumping spiders. At least one species is pretty smart too, being able to look at a scene, memorize the path it has to take to get one place, and then go the right way even though it can't see where it wants to go.
"To be able to capture prey like this jumping spiders rely on superb eye sight. Their eyes are truly remarkable. The front pair is the most impressive. They can be regarded as the best eyes you can find in any arthropod."
Very disturbing imagery, Danielle. I just shuddered too.
May 28, 2009
leonardusalis said...
About ten minutes ago i just killed a ws it was huge still have the dead carcuss for proof. we just moved out in deep boonies and i'll tell ya what i'd rather restle an anaconda than to have to battle some of the bugs out here.
October 09, 2009
You can get a sense of this Carolina Wolf Spider's (Hogna carolinensis) size by comparing it to the cricket upon which it is dining.
I can't believe I'm saying this, but ... achem ...**cough** ... humans needn't fear the wolf spider. Or so I've been told (by possible wolf spider apologists). These spiders are nocturnal hunters who don't climb or even spin appreciable webs. They live in burrows (complete with spider-made turrets as seen in the last photo), and pose no threat to humanity (physically, at least). One might even argue that they are helpful, since they rid their territory of insects, many of which humans would be happy to find themselves free of.
Tonight I'm going to head outside with my head lamp on and see how many wolf spiders I can see prowling around my yard. I'm supposed to be able to spot them by the reflected gleam in their eyes. I won't find any Carolina wolf spiders, thank goodness, but I might still find some other wolf spiders lurking about. I will, won't I? In the Central Valley of California near Sacramento? What's the largest I might expect to encounter? What's the likelihood of my wife coming downstairs in the morning and finding me catatonic on the grass, curled up in the fetal position, and covered in a light misting of morning dew?
11 Comments
Close this window Jump to comment formI often go outside at night to feed cats and I wear a cap with an LED light on the brim. Besides the cats' eyes, I can see all the little spider eyes. It's really interesting.
May 20, 2009
Once in a former house (Illinois), I trundled downstairs in the near-dark and saw something on the stairs. Being a neat freak, I reached to pick it up. Sixth sense kicked in at the last moment and my hand stopped about a inch above it. I turned on the light instead, and behold: one big-a** wolf spider. I caught it under a glass and put it outside.
May 20, 2009
"What's the likelihood of my wife coming downstairs in the morning and finding me catatonic on the grass, curled up in the fetal position, and covered in a light misting of morning dew?" Yep, that would be MY question!
May 20, 2009
Wolf spiders have the best eyesight of all spiders. When these guys look at you - they are really seeing you.
Often people complain that they feel that they are 'sizing them up', but they really aren't. They know you are too big to be a meal.
You have plenty in California. PLENTY. Sorry.
I love these guys, I currently have one living in a nook beside my toilet. I just have to be careful that my pussycat doesn't find him.
May 21, 2009
They actually make pretty good pets. we found this one running across the living room carpet, and my daughter wanted to keep it. It's much more active than her tarantula in the aquarium next to it.
May 21, 2009
Vanessa- "Wolf spiders have the best eyesight of all spiders."
Really? are you sure? I was pretty sure it's jumping spiders. At least one species is pretty smart too, being able to look at a scene, memorize the path it has to take to get one place, and then go the right way even though it can't see where it wants to go.
May 21, 2009
http://www.uky.edu/Ag/CritterFiles/casefile/spiders/jumping/jumping.htm
"Jumping spiders are believed to have the best eyesight of all spiders, maybe of all arthropods."
http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/indexmag.html?http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/artmay00/zebraw.html
"To be able to capture prey like this jumping spiders rely on superb eye sight. Their eyes are truly remarkable. The front pair is the most impressive. They can be regarded as the best eyes you can find in any arthropod."
May 21, 2009
Great eyesight or not, these creatures are beautiful. I always feel like they are looking right through me.
May 27, 2009
They pose no threat until they are on your back porch and spill a million babies next to your feet.
My body just trembled.
May 28, 2009
Very disturbing imagery, Danielle. I just shuddered too.
May 28, 2009
About ten minutes ago i just killed a ws it was huge still have the dead carcuss for proof. we just moved out in deep boonies and i'll tell ya what i'd rather restle an anaconda than to have to battle some of the bugs out here.
October 09, 2009