Wolf spider
From Free net encyclopedia
{{Taxobox
| color = pink
| name = Wolf spider
| image = Wolf spider attack position.jpg
| image_width = 250px
| image_caption = Burrowing wolf spider defending its egg sac
| regnum = Animalia
| phylum = Arthropoda
| classis = Arachnida
| ordo = Araneae
| familia = Lycosidae
| familia_authority = Sundevall, 1833
| subdivision_ranks = Genera
| subdivision =
Arctosa
Geolycosa
Lycosa
Pardosa
Pirata
Rabidosa
Sosippus
}}
The wolf spiders are members of the family Lycosidae. Except for the genus Sosippus, these spiders do not use their silk to make a snare. Some use their silk to line a tubular tunnel in the ground. Some take regular shelter in natural crevices. Still others spend their entire lives wandering around with no fixed abode. Unlike many other spiders, they have good vision and they chase their prey. Some wolf spiders are very small, 0.2" or smaller, and others are rather large, 1" or more. Hogna carolinensis (the "Carolina wolf spider") is the largest U.S. species, with a body that can be more than one inch long.
Female wolf spiders carry their eggs along with them in spherical, silk egg sacs attached to their spinnerets. After the eggs hatch, the multitude of tiny spiders climb onto their mother's abdomen, where she carries them for a considerable period of time.
The Lycos search engine draws its name from the wolf spider's scientific name, Lycosa, as this Genus pursues its prey, as opposed to trapping quarry in a web.
Further reading
- Kaston, Barbara J., John Bamrick, Edward T. Cawley, and Wm. G. Jacques. How to Know the Spiders. Third Edition. McGraw-Hill Science/Engineering/Math, 1978. ISBN 0697048985
Additional photos
 The back of a burrowing wolf spider |
 The silken tunnel of a burrowing wolf spider |
 Wolf spider and egg sac |
 Wolf spider and egg sac |
 Wolf spider and egg sac |
 Hogna helluo |
 Wolf spider with young |
 Hogna frondicola |
External links
- Wolf Spider Schizocosa sp. - diagnostic photographs, descriptions and natural history
- Arachnology home pages: Lycosidae
- Info on Australian wolf spiders, with photos
- Photos of European wolf spiders
- Photos of American wolf spiders
- Wolf spider photos
- Bolivian wolf spider photos.da:Jagtedderkopper (Lycosidae)
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