YOOOO

HOOO!!!!

Nature finds a way….

• https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/oct/31/huge-spider-assumed-extinct-in-britain-discovered-on-mod-site-aoe
• 2” wide

Fear Factor

Shelob “she always needs to feed”

What “IT” really was….

Why are spiders associated with Halloween?? Fear of the dark….

Spider documentaries

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJEH6MhNiPI
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZAYblesQA3w everyone should watch
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kY7ylZ_5B7w
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eisYxkaFij8 excellent Australian documentary
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aizyyUFkQE
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_ArVu88bpM
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrBBW0aoujw
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esUkWZfmjog
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7qMqAgCqME
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPh_Gi7PCqs
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQABY9H1h1Y

The�Misrepresented

I ain’t no stinkin’ spider!!! I am a camel back cricket!!!!

How about these???

• Are daddy-long-legs spiders?
• Also called Harvestmen
• Harvestmen are not true spiders, but spider relatives called olpionids.
• They are nearly blind.
• harvestmen have only one body segment, whereas spiders have two.
• Harvestmen have oval bodies and long, thin legs.
• They are omnivores that hunt small insects, scavenge on decaying material, or feed on plant juices.
• They do not have venom, but can produce a foul smelling scent.

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Camel spider? Nahhhhhh

• Egyptian solpugid, not a true spider, only 6 inches long, darling of photoshop and campfire tales
• They may seek a person’s shadow on a hot day to cool off
• Painful bite but not venomous and they are NOT AROUND HERE
• Have solpugids in desert southwest (5/8 to 1 ¾ inches)
• Solpugids also known as wind scorpions or sun spiders
• Want to read more? https://cals.arizona.edu/yavapai/anr/hort/byg/archive/solpugid2013.html

Everyone’s favorite topic….

• What are the differences between spiders and insects? To begin with, spiders do not have antennae, and they have eight legs versus six.
• They also do NOT have wings, and have only two major body segments---a fused head and chest and a usually much larger abdomen.
• An insect has three body parts: head, thorax (chest), and an abdomen.
• There are 46,000 species of spiders described
• Web building is genetically preprogrammed and a web can catch up to 250 insects per day
• Greatest regulator of insects

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Spiders

• All are predators
• In nature in undisturbed areas 1 spider per 3 sq. inches
• Very nearsighted, not aggressive, usually “bite” only when seriously provoked, may not be strong enough to pierce skin at all
• Dangerous ones found in dark, hidden corners, not in open air
• Spiders are present because there is a food source: insects
• Find source of food and eliminate and spiders go away on their own

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How do I know if I have been bitten: Spider bite has TWO fang marks, right?

https://www.burkemuseum.org/collections-and-research/biology/arachnology-and-entomology/spider-myths/myth-spider-bites-leave

• Spiders do have two venom-injecting fangs and typically bite with both at the same time. However, in any spider smaller than a tarantula, the entry points of the two fangs will be so close together that there is little if any visible separation. Also, the fangs are so slender and sharp that the actual entry points are all but invisible.
• When you have a "bite" with two separated marks, it is either caused by a bloodsucking insect that has bitten twice (a common occurrence), or is a double skin eruption arising from one disease condition or arthropod bite, also a common occurrence.
• To handle a spider, let it crawl onto you, do not try to pick it up

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SCOUTING for pooooooo

• Use your eyes to look for reddish brown or black specks gathered around a crack or crevice.
• Now spiders will sometimes produce the same result so don’t panic unless there are other indicators such as bites or a sickly sweet odor associated with the insects’ glands.
• the best tool for bed bug monitoring is a strong flashlight and sticky boards.
• Or use a baby wipe to swipe at the specks: if they smear red, bed bugs are a strong possibility.
• If they smear brown or black, a spider or a wanna be

Spider frass

Bedbug frass

https://www.burkemuseum.org/collections-and-research/biology/arachnology-and-entomology/spider-myths/myth-spiders-only-suck

• “As a first step in eating, the spider will literally vomit digestive fluid over the prey. Then the prey is chewed with the "jaws" (chelicerae), and the fluid is sucked back into the mouth together with some liquefied "meat" from the prey. The spider repeats this process as often as necessary to digest, and ingest, all but the inedible hard parts. What is discarded afterwards is a small ball of residue.
• Spiders other than orbweavers may eat the prey's body but discard some of the wings, legs, etc. Spiders with very small (if strong) jaws (such as crab spiders and cobweb weavers) make small holes in the prey and vomit their digestive fluid into the prey's body, the end result being a hollow shell with some or most of the muscles and internal organs digested and sucked out.”
• EWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!

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Waiter! Check please….

Before

After external digestion

Pesticides not Very effective (http://npic.orst.edu/pest/spiders.html, and Burke museum site)

• Residual pesticides indoors may help control other pests that spiders eat, but they may not provide long-term spider control.
• Apparent sudden increases in population are really just temporary increases in activity, usually connected with mating or a prey outbreak in the home, eg, indian meal moth. 
• “Spiders do not react as strongly to "residual" insecticides as insects do (they were formulated to kill insects, not arachnids); these chemicals will kill the spiders contacted directly by the spray, and that's about all. Spiders are highly mobile and quickly repopulate any area from which they have been eliminated. And spider egg sacs are relatively impervious to pesticides.”
• Sticky traps (below) remove many more spiders than typical pesticide treatments, so you can use glue boards, or monitoring sticky traps, but exclusion is best defense
• You can also order expensive, fancy sticky traps from Amazon…be sure to color coordinate with your yoga outfit…
• Or get out Ye Olde Vacuum Cleynare, suck ‘em up, and get rid of the bag immediately

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Who loves ya, babeee???

Deterrents

• Remove trash, old boxes, old clothing, wood piles, rock piles, and other unwanted items. Eliminate clutter in closets, basements, attics, garages, and outbuildings.
• Store items off the floor and away from walls in basements, crawl spaces, attics, garages, and outbuildings in order to reduce spider harborage sites.
• Eliminate household pests (prey) such as flies, ants, and cockroaches that attract spiders.
• Do not stack wood against the cabins. Remove heavy vegetation and leaf litter around the foundation.
• Wash spider webs off the outside of the house using a high-pressure hose.
• One of the best suggestions is to shake out your clothing, gloves and shoes before you put them on as spiders like to hide inside. Wear gloves when handling wood or rocks. Use care when handling cardboard boxes as spiders like to hide inside crevices.

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Exclusion

• Install tight-fitting screens on windows and doors; also install weather stripping and door sweeps.
• Seal or caulk cracks and crevices where spiders can enter the house. Equip vents in soffits, foundations, and roof gables with tight-fitting screens.
• Install yellow or sodium vapor light bulbs outdoors since these attract fewer insects for spiders to feed upon.
• Many web-making spiders set up residence near lights that remain on at night. Locate such lights away from the cabins or turn them off when not needed.
• Tape the edges of cardboard boxes to prevent spider entry. Use plastic bags (sealed) to store loose items in vulnerable areas, garage, basement, and attic.

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Zen

Spider history

• Oldest known terrestrial arachnid: 420 million years ago during Silurian, spider body plan, eight legs and a pair of pedipalps
• Earliest known silk producing spigots 386 million years ago in the Devonian (not true spinnerets…which are modified appendages giving them the mobility needed for web building!!!!)
• The still existing Liphistiidae (primitive burrowing spiders—spinnerets in middle of body, looks like a tarantula) is a family that has been around since the Carboniferous, and one ancestor had the first true spinnerets.
• There are two main groups of modern spiders, both of which appeared in the Triassic, over 200 million years ago and the Jurassic and Cretaceous have many fossil representatives of modern spider families

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• From oldest to youngest:
• Silurian
• Devonian
• Carboniferous
• Permian
• Triassic
• Jurassic
• Cretaceous
• Spans 444 million years ago to about 72 million years ago

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Grampa and Gramma looked like this….

Liphistiidae: Kimura spider and their kin

Tsuchigumo or Jurogumo in Japan

• One of the yokai, supernatural monsters, spirits and demons in Japanese folk lore Supposedly no connection
• Also name for “ground dwelling clans” against the emperor…
• But…..
• Jurogumo, the beautiful spider woman, is based on the golden orb weaver

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Silk Production

• Spiders use different gland types to produce different silks, and may produce eight different silks
• Most spiders have three pairs of spinnerets, each having its own function – there are also spiders with just one pair and others with as many as four pairs.
• constructing the web metabolic energy sink because of the large amount of protein required
• common for spiders to eat their own web daily so silk proteins recycled and energy regained
• Tensile strength greater than steel with greater elasticity
• Applications: bullet proof vests, artificial tendons…..

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Types of webs

• About 700 meters or almost 2,297 feet of silk can be pulled from a spiders’ abdomen in one continuous strand
• Spiral orb webs: built in the direction of the prevailing breeze
• Tangle webs or cobwebs
• Funnel webs, with associations divided into primitive types and modern types
• Tubular webs, which run up the bases of trees or along the ground
• Sheet webs
• Webs may be in a vertical plane such as most orb webs
• horizontal plane as most sheet webs
• any angle in between
• Mostly found in sheet-web spider families: webs with loose, irregular tangles of silk above them. These tangled obstacle courses serve to disorient and knock down flying insects or protect spiders from predators like birds and wasps

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Types of silk

• Sticky capture silk
• Fluffy capture silk
• Spiders may sit in center of web but day hunters often sit off to side so predators cannot see them with one foot with one foot on a signal line or protect themselves by appearing to be inedible or unappetizing.
• Why don’t spiders stick to their own webs? They walk on the non-sticky threads but---during the course of spinning sticky strands, spiders have to touch these sticky strands. They do this without sticking by using careful movements, dense hairs and nonstick coatings on their feet to prevent adhesion

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Not all spiders have “webs” per se….

• They may live in silk lined burrows or run prey down and then wrap them up in silk
• Also the net casting spider (see Australian documentary) which is one of the coolest of all…tropical spiders in many places around the world
• Comb out fluffy silk with special combs on their legs
• Fantastic looking and amazing hunting strategy

Water dwellers

• Several types of water-dwelling spiders rest their feet on the water's surface in much the same manner as an orb-web user.
• When an insect falls onto the water and is ensnared by surface tension spider walks of water to grab it
• Others create a little diving bell
• Small fish are also captured this way

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Silk�hardens �on contact�with�water

Cobweb paintings

• began during the 16th century in a remote valley of Austrian Tyrolean alps
• layered and wound cobwebs, stretched over cardboard to make a mat, and strengthened it by brushing with milk diluted in water.
• A small brush was then used to apply watercolor to the cobwebs, or custom tools to create engravings.
• Fewer than a hundred cobweb paintings survive today, most of which are held in private collections
• https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/the-lost-art-of-painting-on-cobweb-canvases

Other traditional cobweb uses

• In traditional European medicine, cobwebs were used on wounds and cuts and seem to help healing and reduce bleeding. They are antibacterial and antifungal. In the 1997 production of Ivanhoe, Rebecca uses cobwebs on Ivanhoe’s wounds. (I liked the 1982 version much better---but no cobwebs.) They are also good for owunds because they have lots of vitamin K which helps to clot blood. Webs were used several hundred years ago as pads to stop an injured person's bleeding.
• The effects of some drugs can be measured by examining their effects on a spider's web-building. Far out, man.
• Spider web strands have been used for crosshairs or reticles ( a series of fine lines or fibers in the eyepiece of an optical device, such as a telescope or microscope, or on the screen of an oscilloscope, used as a measuring scale or an aid in locating objects).

Confirmed spiders in New York

• https://spiderid.com/locations/united-states/new-york/

Yellow Sac spiders

Cheiracanthium mildei

C. inclusum: black footed yellow sac spider

Poisonous?

• According to the DEC, there are only two species of spiders that are native to New York that are poisonous. 
• They are described as small, pale yellow spiders called yellow sac spiders or Cheiracanthium mildei and C. inclusum.��

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Sac Spiders�

• Clubionidae, Miturgidae
• Sac spiders are typically light colored spiders with noticeably protruding spinnerets and dark fangs.
• They weave small silk sacs under rocks or loose bark that they use for sleeping retreating and rearing young.
• Sac spiders lack capture webs, and wander in vegetation and occasionally in homes looking for prey.
• There are two family groups of sac spiders.
• Two species of small, pale, yellow spiders, called yellow sac spiders, Cheiracanthium mildei and C. inclusum, are the only spiders in New York that are moderately poisonous to humans.
• They have necrotic venom that cause itchy or painful ulcerating sores that are slow to heal.
• In New York, bites attributed to brown recluse spiders are almost certainly from yellow sac spiders.
• Go by eye arrangement, NOT the violin

C. mildei

C. inclusum

Cheiracanthium: yellow sac spiders

• They are usually pale in colour, and have an abdomen that can range from yellow to beige.
• Tarsi do not point either outward or inward so unique
• Mildly venomous
• Necrotic lesions disputed
• Some of these spiders are attracted to the smell of volatiles in gasoline
• caused problems by weaving webs inside the fuel hose of certain mazda 6 2010-2012 resulting in blockages and build-up of pressure that could potentially cause fuel leakage from the fuel tank and an increased risk of fire.
• Had 2 recalls to retrofit fuel hoses with a spring and software that would alert owners if problem developing
• https://money.cnn.com/2014/04/06/autos/mazda-spiders-recall/index.html
• LOLOLOLOL nature finds a way….

Cheiracanthium mildei�(Long-legged Sac Spider): Chericanthiidae

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• Indoors
• May
• Historically, this spider has been implicated in necrotic bites, however, recent research has exonerated the species as a cause of necrotic wounds.
• Yellow sac spiders are sometimes mistaken for brown recluses inside homes.
• Typically most common inside homes and buildings, while our native North American species, Cheiracanthium inclusum, is found more often outdoors in fields and foliage.

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Yellow sac spider

Sac spider eye arrangement

No more hysteria

Scream!

Scream and run…

We do not have these on long Island normally

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Theridiidae�tangle-web spiders, cobweb spiders

Northern widow w/broken hourglass

Don’t have these classics….usually….

Theridiidae�tangle-web spiders, cobweb spiders

• Theridiidae, also known as the tangle-web spiders, cobweb spiders and comb-footed : black widows and Australian red backs belong to this genus
• spin sticky capture silk instead of woolly silk. They have a comb of serrated bristles on the tarsus of the fourth leg
• Family has large diversity of web types
• Many trap ground dwelling arthropods with sticky silk lines leading to the soil surface.
• Webs remain in place for extended periods and are expanded and repaired, but no regular pattern of web replacement has been observed
• Black widows can have their markings on belly or back, many different kinds but only northern widow native : RELUCTANT TO BITE

Parasteatoda tepidariorum�(Common House Spider): Theridiidae

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• May

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Theridiidae – Achaearanea tepidariorum�

• American House spider
• The American house spider is the most commonly seen species of cobweb spider found around homes.
• Most cobweb spiders can be identified by their large, round, shiny abdomens, relatively thin legs, and their tendency to hang upside down in messy cobwebs that are attached to the structure by a few sticky threads.
• The webs are built where there is protection from the elements.
• Female cobweb spiders produce light brown, spherical egg sacs that hang in the web.

Steatoda borealis: Theridiidae-Cobweb weavers�

• Indoors
• May

Steatoda triangulosa�(Triangulate Cobweb Spider): Theridiidae

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• Indoors
• April

Dysderidae: wood louse spiders

• Also known as sowbug-eating spiders
• Dysderids have six eyes in semicircle
• Also eats beetles
• Have huge chelicerae with big fangs
• Reddish brown with tan abdomen

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Dysdera crocata�(Woodlouse Hunter): Dysderidae

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• Indoors
• May
• Individuals make take about 18 months to mature, then survive an additional year or two on average.
• Prey seems to be preferentially terrestrial isopod crustaceans known as woodlice (aka “sowbugs” and “pillbugs”), but any other arthropods it can catch are fair game.
• The long fangs help the spider to maintain a scissor-like grip on woodlice, while typically using only one fang to pierce the prey’s softer underbelly.
• Yeah it can bite but you really have to harass it, and little pain associated…back to normal in an hour…bites are defensive and most are accidental

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Pholcidae: Cellar Dwellers

Pholcidae, commonly known as cellar spiders or cellar dwellers

• also present in bathrooms
• Pholcids are thin and fragile arachnids.
• gray to brown, sometimes clear, with banding or chevron markings
• Have messy and irregular-shaped webs with no adhesive properties; instead relies on its irregular structure to trap prey.
• When finished eating they will clean the web by unhooking the prey and letting it drop from the web.
• They may shake their webs violently when frightened (or if trying to re-ensare escaping prey) and if it continues to be disturbed it will run away
• May also shake the webs of other spiders to mimic prey and then enjoy them for a snack when the other spider investigates
• TOTALLY NON VENEMOUS TO HUMANS contrary to wives tale

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Long-bodied Cellar Spider): �Pholcidae

�

• March, indoors
• May invade the web of other spiders and eat them, including members of their own species. Can also catch and eat other large spiders that walk into their web
• Females wrap their eggs in a few strands of silk and carry them in their chelicerae (jaws); they may lay up to three egg sacs in her lifetime, each one about 30 eggs.
• Mother doesn’t usually feed at all while she holds the eggs in her mouth, however they’re occasionally witnessed hanging their egg sac in the web temporarily in order to feed, preen, or mate (Eiseman & Charney 2010).
• Spider may quickly “bounce” up and down in their web if feeling threatened. This is where the (not often used) nickname “vibrating spider” comes from.
• There is a persistent rumor that this spider (or others in the same family) has the most potent venom of all spiders, but there’s never been a single shred of scientific evidence to back this up. Arachnologists think their venom is not very potent at all, even when used on insects.
• The common name “daddy longlegs” has/is also used for harvestmen (which are arachnids, but aren’t spiders) and some crane flies (flying insects not related to spiders).

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ewwwwwwww

Araneidae: Orb-weavers

• Often build webs near outdoor lights
• During the day, these spiders can be found hiding in a retreat made from a curled leaf tied together with silk.
• The retreat is generally located above the remains of the previous night’s web, connected to it by a silk thread.

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Araneidae�Orb-weaver spider: spiral web

• They are the most common group of builders of spiral wheel-shaped webs …takes about 1.5 hours
• A framework of nonsticky silk is built up before the spider adds a final spiral of silk covered in sticky droplets.
• Araneids have eight similar eyes, hairy or spiny legs
• As orb-weavers age, they tend to have less production of their silk, so many adult orb-weavers can then depend on their coloration to attract more of their prey.
• Sexual dimorphism means males much smaller

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Araneidae�Orb-weaver spider

• Generally, orb-weaving spiders are three-clawed builders of flat web with sticky spiral capture silk.
• begun when the spider floats a line on the wind to another surface. The spider secures the line and then drops another line from the center, making a "Y".
• The rest of the scaffolding follows with many radii of nonsticky silk being constructed before a final spiral of sticky capture silk
• The third claw is used to walk on the nonsticky part of the web. Characteristically, the prey that blunders into the sticky lines is stunned by a quick bite, and then wrapped in silk. If the prey is venemous, such as a wasp, wrapping may precede biting and/or stinging.

Araneidae�Orb-weaver spider

• Many orb-weavers build a new web each day.
• Most orb-weavers tend to be active during the evening hours; they hide for most of the day.
• Generally, towards evening, the spider will consume the old web, rest for approximately an hour, then spin a new web in the same general location.
• Therefore no debris in web unlike spiders such as black widows
• May exhibit a crisscrossed band of silk through the center of the web to stabilize it
• This may act as a warning marker for birds or may decrease the visibility of the silk to insects, thus making it harder for prey to avoid the web.

Araneus diadematus�(Cross Orb-weaver) :Araneidae

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• Outdoors
• october

Araneus marmoreus�(Marbled Orb-weaver): Araneidae

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• Outdoors
• October

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Araneus saevus : Araneidae�

• Outdoors
• October

Araneus trifolium�(Shamrock Orb-weaver): Araneidae

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• Outdoors
• October

Araniella displicata�(Six-spotted Orb-weaver): Araneidae

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• Outdoors
• June

Argiope aurantia(Black and Yellow Garden Spider) Araneidae

�

• Outdoors
• August, outdoors
• This species takes most of its potty breaks at night, and often leaves its web to do so
• As a defensive strategy, this spider may rapidly shake and vibrate in its web (like pholcids); the shaking blurs the spider and makes it appear bigger than it really is.
• Egg sacs are made of tough brown silk, are spherical or pear-shaped, about 20-25mm in diameter, and can contain 400 to 1,200 yellowish eggs, sometimes even more. Females can make 3 or 4 of them, roughly one or two weeks apart. 
• Spiderlings (baby spiders) overwinter inside the egg sac and emerge in the spring.

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Black and Yellow Garden Spider

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• Araneidae: Argiope aurantia
• One of the largest, most conspicuous spiders in New York, the diurnally active black and yellow garden spider occurs in sunny fields and gardens.
• Like all orb weavers, its web is an architectural wonder, designed to greatly extend the spider’s sensory system while using a minimal amount of silk to trap or slow down flying prey.
• The web has several parts: non-sticky spokes (radii) and lines that frame the web provide structural support: the sticky spiral ensnares flying insects: and the broad swaths of white zigzag silk deter birds from fling through it.
• The web is rebuilt each morning to refresh glue on the spiral. Large prey items are wrapped and immobilized with broad bands of swathing silk.
• Sexually dimorphic, adult females are hundreds of times larger than the tiny males.

� 

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Larinioides cornutus�(Furrow Orb-weaver) Araneidae

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• Outdoors
• May

Larinioides sclopetarius�(Bridge Orb-weaver) Araneidae

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• Outdoors
• May

Micrathena gracilis�(Spined Micrathena): Araneidae

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• Outdoors
• September

Micrathena sagittata�(Arrow-shaped Micrathena) Araneidae

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• Outdoors
• August

Neoscona crucifera�(Hentz Orb-weaver): Araneidae

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• Outdoors
• October

Pisauridae: nursery web spiders

Fishing or Nursery Web Spiders�

• Pisauridae
• Nursery web spiders resemble wolf spiders, but have smaller eyes and legs that are held more widely to the sides of their body.
• They get their name from the fact that some species fish for aquatic prey, such as insects, crustaceans, or even small minnows.
• Standing on the banks of streams or ponds with their legs lightly touching the water, the spiders feel for vibrations from passing prey and then quickly dive into the water to pursue it.
• Other species of this spider hunt vertically on vegetation or basement walls. Fishing or nursery web spiders build a characteristic “nursery” web in vegetation, where they guard their egg sacs and spiderlings.

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Ummm….Hi? (fishing spider eye arrangement)

Pisauridae�Nursery web spider�

• Many can walk on the surface of still bodies of water and may even dive beneath the surface temporarily to escape enemies.
• Fast runners
• They can jump a distance of 5 to 6 inches, but they have trouble climbing extremely smooth surfaces
• Look like wolf spiders except all pisaurids have eyes that are about the same size while wolf spiders have two very prominent compound eyes
• female nursery web spiders carry their egg sacs with their jaws and pedipalps but wolf spiders attach them to their spinnerets
• they get their name from the fact that when eggs are about to hatch, a female spider builds a nursery "tent", places her egg sac inside, and stands guard outside
• the nursery web spiders are roaming hunters that don't use webs for catching prey (wolf spiders too!).

Pisauridae�Nursery web spider

• The female spider sometimes attempts to eat the male after mating.
• The male, to reduce the risk of this, often presents the female with a gift such as a fly when approaching in the hope that this will satisfy her hunger.
• Sometimes, this gift is a fake present intended to fool the female.
• Males may wrap the fake gift in silk, to deceive the female to mate.
• Females can detect the fake gift and terminate mating, negating the male's deception in not giving a real gift.

Dolomedes albineus�(White-banded Fishing Spider): Pisauridae (nursery web spiders)

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• May
• outdoors

Dolomedes scriptus�(Striped Fishing Spider) (Pisauridae)

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• Outdoors
• april

Dolomedes tenebrosus�(Dark Fishing Spider): Pisauridae

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• Outdoors
• May

Pisaurina mira�(Nursery Web Spider): Pisauridae

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• Outdoors
• May

Lycosidae�Wolf spiders�

• Have excellent eyesight. They have eight eyes arranged in three rows. The bottom row consists of four small eyes, the middle row has two very large eyes and the top row has two medium-sized eyes. Their eyes “glow” in the dark when you shine a light on them
• They live mostly in solitude and hunt alone
• Do not spin webs. Some are opportunistic hunters pouncing upon prey as they find it or even chasing it over short distances. Some wait for passing prey in or near the mouth of a burrow.
• Two of the wolf spider's eight eyes are large and prominent and glow in dark, which distinguishes them from the nursery web spiders whose eyes are all of roughly equal size. This can also help distinguish them from grass spiders
• OH WOW: fossil spider eyes STILL GLOW! https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2019/01/new-fossil-spiders-with-glowing-eyes-found-south-korea/

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Lycosidae�Wolf spider

• Only jumping spiders and huntsman spiders see better than wolf spiders
• Egg sac attached to the spinnerets at the end of the abdomen, allowing the spider to carry her unborn young with her. The abdomen must be held in a raised position to keep the egg case from dragging on the ground.
• After hatch, they clamber up their mother's legs and crowd onto her back…the mother carries the spiderlings for several weeks before they are large enough to disperse and fend for themselves.
• No other spiders are currently known to carry their young on their backs for any period of time.

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Lycosidae�Wolf spider

• Some members of the Lycosidae make deep, tubular burrows in which they lurk much of the time, or may shelter under rocks etc.
• likely to be attracted into human habitation when the weather starts to turn colder in autumn.
• Lycosids, and spiders in general, males of almost any species can sometimes be found inside homes and buildings as they wander in search for females during the autumn.
• Males distinguished by enlarged pedipalps.

Tigrosa aspersa�(Tiger Wolf Spider): Lycosidae

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• Outdoors
• May

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Tigrosa georgicola : Lycosidae�

• Outdoors
• May

Tigrosa helluo: Lycosidae�

• Indoors
• May

Gladicosa gulosa: Lycosidae�

• Indoors
• April

Trochosa ruricola: Lycosidae�

• Outdoors
• May

Varacosa avara: Lycosidae�

• Indoors
• March

Hogna baltimoriana photo from Hampton Bays!!!�Lycosidae

• Outdoors
• October

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Lucas the Spider: Salticidae

• Jumping spiders are easily identified by their large eyes, squat bodies and sturdy legs.
• They are very intelligent, colorful spiders with distinct personalities. Jumping spiders have excellent vision and will often turn to look at you as you approach. They hunt during the day, eating insect and other spiders.
• They get their name from their ability to jump impressive distances while searching in vegetation or catching prey.

Jumping Spiders�

• Before jumping, these spiders will touch their abdomens to the ground to tack down their draglines.
• That way if they miss their destination, their spinnerets clamp the silk so they only fall a short distance.
• When jumping spiders see prey that they cannot jump onto directly, they are known to take a detour route through the vegetation to put them into a position above the intended prey.
• Male jumping spiders court females by moving their brightly colored chelicerae, palps or leg tufts. In autumn, many jumping spiders build silken retreats in goldenrod plants, windowsills, or mailboxes.

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Salticidae: Jumping spider

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• Known for their keen eyesight
• Although they normally move unobtrusively and fairly slowly, most species are capable of very agile jumps, notably when hunting, but sometimes in response to sudden threats or crossing long gaps.
• All jumping spiders have four pairs of eyes, with the middle pair being particularly large.
• Jumping spiders are among the easiest to distinguish from similar spider families because of the shape of the cephalothorax and their eye patterns.
• the feet of jumping spiders have finely divided hairs that allow them to walk vertically
• In addition to using their silk for safety lines while jumping, they also build silken "pup tents", where they take shelter from bad weather and sleep at night.
• They molt in these shelters, build and store egg cases in them, and also spend the winter in them

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Salticidae: Jumping spider

• Jumping spiders are generally active during the day.
• Hemolymph pressure in body powers their off, have drag line so if it misses, it climbs back up the silk thread
• Like many other spiders that leave practically continuous silk trails, jumping spiders impregnate the silk line with pheromones that play a role in social and reproductive communication, and possibly in navigation.
• Certain species of jumping spiders have been shown by experiment to be capable of learning, recognizing, and remembering colors, and adapting their hunting behavior accordingly
• Males both “sing” and dance during courtship. The singing consists of tapping to create vibrations and if they stop tapping and only dance they are much more likely to be considered prey by the female

Salticidae: Jumping spider

• salticids do not necessarily follow a straight path in approaching prey. They may follow a circuitous course, sometimes even a course that takes the hunter through regions from which the prey is not visible, e.g. Portia
• may also include nectar in their diet!!! There are at least 95 recorded instances of spiders eating plant products, according to a new review in the Journal of Arachnology.
• Eat everything from nectar to sap to small fruiting bodies, wrote the study's leader, Martin Nyffeler, a research fellow in conservation biology at the University of Basel in Switzerland, and colleagues.
• 60% of these were jumping spiders
• Peckhamia mimics ant behavior, and others may eat honey dew
• Still must dissolve plant parts with enzymes
• Way to survive times of prey scarcity
• https://www.livescience.com/54054-plant-eating-spiders-revealed.html

Sitticus fasciger: Salticidae�

• Outdoors
• April

Phidippus audax�(Bold Jumper): Salticidae

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• Outdoors
• May

Platycryptus undatus�(Tan Jumping Spider): Salticidae

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• Indoors
• May
• First jumping spider to have been officially recorded as having been seen eating an earthworm, a pretty uncommon meal for a spider that doesn’t spend much time on the ground (Ross 2008).
• Female spins a relatively spacious silken chamber around herself and then deposits her eggs on the floor of it, covering them with a thin layer of silk afterward. The finished “look” is reminiscent of a fried egg. She stands close guard over it until the babies emerge and disperse.

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Salticus scenicus�(Zebra Jumper): Salticidae

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• Outdoors
• May
• Adult males may use their enlarged chelicerae (jaws) and fangs in sparring contests with rival males 

Paraphidippus aurantius�(Emerald Jumping Spider): Salticidae

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• Outdoors
• April

Naphrys pulex: Salticidae�

• Outdoors
• May

Maevia inclemens�(Dimorphic Jumper) Salticidae

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• Outdoors
• May

Eris militaris�(Bronze Jumper) Salticidae

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• Outdoors
• February

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Misumena vatia�(Golden-rod Crab Spider): �Thomisidae

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• Outdoors, may
• Goldenrod flowers and milkweed are well-known habitats for this species.
• Because they live and hunt on flowers, the majority of their diet includes pollinators (e.g. bumblebees, honeybees, butterflies, moths, syrphid flies, etc).
• Males often eat flower pollen to fuel themselves during their quest for mates.
• Primarily daytime feeders, but they’re also known to feed late into the night on warm days when insect activity is high, which suggests they are not solely dependent on their vision for capturing prey.
• This species usually only has one egg sac (brood) in their lifetime. The female will fold over the tip of a leaf and web it together, then deposit her eggs inside the “pocket.” She guards the eggs until her death.

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Goldenrod crab spider

• do not build webs to trap prey, though all of them produce silk for drop lines and sundry reproductive purposes;
• some are wandering hunters and the most widely known are ambushers
• Some species sit on or beside flowers or fruit, where they grab visiting insects.
• Individuals of some species are able to change color over a period of some days, to match the flower on which they are sitting.
• Some species frequent promising positions among leaves or bark, where they await prey, and some of them sit in the open, where they are startlingly good mimics of bird droppings.
• One of the best ways to find these spiders is to look on flowers for immobile insects situated at an odd angle. Upon closer inspection you will see the insect in the jaws of a crab spider.

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Linyphiidae: Sheet weaver, sheet web, or money spider�

• Linyphiidae called money spiders from folk lore that if such a spider is seen running on you, it has come to spin you new clothes, meaning financial good fortune
• Make sheet-like webs: commonly found in classic "bowl and doily" webs or filmy domes.
• Come in all different sizes
• See them on side of road

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Sheet Web Weavers: Linyphiidae�

• Often overlooked because of their small size (less than a quarter inch long), sheet web weavers are among the most abundant spiders in vegetation.
• They build fine, non-sticky, sheet webs in vegetation. The webs are composed of a lace-like horizontal web with “knock down” threads, or many fine, disorganized vertical strands that are invisible to small flying insects, which crash into the threads and fall onto the sheet.
• The spiders run upside down on the underside of their webs and bite prey through the web.
• Some local species may vary the shape of the sheet web. One species, called the “bowl and doily” spider, weaves a cup-shaped web above the horizontal sheet and hangs from the bowl. Another called the “filmy dome” spider, weaves a dome under with it lurks.
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Pityohyphantes costatus�(Hammock Spider): Linyphiidae-Money spiders

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• Outdoors, December
• December

Amaurobiidae (hacklemesh weaver)

Amaurobius ferox�(Black Lace-Weaver): Amaurobiidae (hacklemesh weaver)

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• Indoors
• April
• This species is matriphagous, which means the mother sacrifices herself as food for her spiderlings.
• This spider is  considered “subsocial” because, after cannibalizing their mother, the spiderlings remain together and feed communally for about a month.
• Cloudsley-Thompson (1955) mentions that, in England, this species is sometimes called the “Old Churchman” because it can be seen scurrying around on the walls and pews of old churches before rain storms.
•  The abdomen has pale markings in a unique pattern that is often likened to a ghoulish mask or skull. It may be faded or difficult to see in some specimens.

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Callobius bennetti : Amaurobiidae, hacklemesh weaver�

• Outdoors
• April
• found in crevices and hollows or under stones where they build retreats

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Scytodidae�Spitting Spider�

• have six eyes arranged in three pairs like recluse
• characteristic flecked pattern of spots.
• catch their prey by spitting a fluid that congeals on contact into a sticky mass that is venomous, and this immobilizes and poisons prey
• sway from side to side as they spit so catch prey with a criss-crossed “z”pattern 1000 times per second like a hose whipping back and forth, then bite and wrap as other spiders do
• Interesting behavior for spiders in that they are “prosocial”, meaning that mature spiders live together and assist the young with food!
• Eyes are similar to recluse but different family

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Dang it! I am a cricket, not a spider….

Scytodes thoracica: Scytodidae-spitting spiders�

• Indoors
• April
• Eye arrangement is similar-looking to that of the “brown recluse”. Color, pattern, and carapace shape are vastly different, though.
• Subdues its prey with a spray of venom-soaked silk and glue. Typically stalks prey to within 10-15mm and then “spits.” The spit actually shrinks afterwards, helping to constrict the prey ---once it’s immobile, the spider moves in to bite and inject venom.
• Usually found at night, slowly wandering around, or simply not moving at all.

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Agelenidae�funnel-weaver spider

Hobo spider: we do not have here

Funnel-weaver web

Agelenidae�funnel-weaver spider

• Agelenids have eight eyes in two horizontal rows of four.
• Cephalothorax narrows somewhat towards the front where the eyes are. The abdomen is more or less oval, usually patterned with two rows of lines and spots.
• Some species have longitudinal lines on the dorsal surface of the cephalothorax, whereas other species do not; for example, the hobo spider does not, which assists in informally distinguishing it from similar-looking species
• Nearly all Agelenidae are harmless to humans, but the bite of the hobo spider on the west coast may cause necrotic lesions.

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Agelenidae�funnel-weaver spider

• Most of the Agelenidae are very fast runners, especially on their webs. With speeds clocked at over 1.7 feet/second
• Agelenids build a flat sheet of nonsticky web with a funnel-shaped retreat to one side or occasionally in the middle, depending on the situation and species.
• Accordingly, "funnel weaver" is the most widely accepted common name for members of the family, but they should not be confused with the so-called "funnel-web tarantulas" or "funnel-web spiders" belonging to more primitive families

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Agelenidae�funnel-web spider

• build sheet webs in the open, typically on grass or in scrub
• Wait for prey such as grasshoppers that fall onto the horizontal web.
• Although the web is not sticky, it is full of entangling filaments that the spider continually lays down when passing over. The filaments catch in the least projections on a prey insect's body or limbs.
• The web also is springy, and whether perching on the sheet or awaiting prey in its retreat, the spider reacts immediately to vibrations, whether from a courting male, the threatening struggles of dangerous invaders, or the weaker struggles of potential meals.
• They attack promising prey by rushing out at high speed and dealing a paralyzing venomous bite.
• Once the prey has been disabled, the spider generally drags it back into the retreat and begins to feed.

Agelenidae�funnel-web spider

• good vision, and are generally photosensitive (i.e. react to changes in the light), so they can successfully retreat upon perceiving a larger threat's shadow approaching.
• In September, males of outdoors species can seek refuge within houses, usually nesting on or underneath outer windowsills, or also around the porch door.
• May come back repeatedly to same area for web building

Tegenaria domestica�(Barn Funnel Weaver): Agelenidae-Funnel Weavers

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• Indoors
• April

Gnaphosidae�Stealthy Ground Spiders

• Example: ant mimicking spiders
• No web!!! They generally run prey down on the surface.
• They hunt at night and spend the day in a silken retreat.
• When hunting, ground spiders produce thick, gluey silk from their enlarged spinnerets and attempt to use it to entangle their prey in swathing attacks, often applying their webbing to their prey's legs and mouths.
• By immobilizing potential prey in this manner, stealthy ground spiders can subdue proportionally large creatures while reducing risk of injury to themselves from their prey's attempts to fight back

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Herpyllus ecclesiasticus�(Eastern Parson Spider) :Gnaphosidae-Stealthy Ground Spider

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• Indoors
• May

Anyphaenidae: ghost spiders

• distinguished from the sac spiders by having the abdominal spiracle placed one third to one half of the way anterior to the spinnerest toward the epigastric furrow on the underside of the abdomen. (mmm hmm)
• In most spiders the spiracle is just anterior to the spinnerets
• have eight eyes arranged in two rows
• are wandering predators that build silk lined retreats, or sacs, usually on plant terminals, between leaves, under bark or under rocks.

Hibana gracilis: Anyphaenidae-Ghost spider�

• Indoors
• may

Trachelas tranquillus�(Broad-faced Sac Spider): Trachelidae-Ground Sac Spiders

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• Indoors, October
• This species prefers warm and dry habitats. It can be found inside rolled leaves, on fences, under stones and boards, and will frequently enter houses by accident in the autumn
• Will not bite unless handled or provoked.
• There are records of secondary infection associated with the bite, which may result from the spider's propensity for feeding on dead arthropods. Typically, the bite results in redness and some swelling, similar to a bee or wasp sting.

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Tetragnathidae�Long-jawed orb weaver: spiral web

• Long-jawed orb weavers or long jawed spiders (Tetragnathidae) build small orb webs with an open hub with few, wide-set radii and spirals with no signal line or retreat.
• Some species are often found in long vegetation near water
• Tetragnathidae have been primarily sighted during the month of April or May.

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Tetragnatha viridis: April

Leucauge venusta�(Orchard Orb-weaver) Tetragnathidae-Long jawed� orb weaver

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• Outdoors, May
• When at rest, they may cling lengthwise along a twig or blade of grass, holding on with the short third pair of legs, long pairs of legs are extended.
• typically live in meadows near water, and around the banks of waterways (rivers, lakes, swamps), usually on low-hanging branches and reeds

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Meta ovalis�(Cave Orb-weaver) Tetragnathidae

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• Outdoors
• may

And some EXTREMELY cool spider facts

• Modified orb weaver
• The droplet contains female moth pheromone mimics
• Can change pheromone depending on moth that is around!!!
• Spider starts to twirl bolas in response to vibration

And some EXTREMELY cool spider facts

• Tiny spiders move around by the process of “ballooning”
• It is an electrostatic process!!!
• They tend to balloon just before rain and with calm winds by using electricity fields in the atmosphere when there will be thunderstorms…
• They tiptoe and sensory hairs are moved by changes in the electrical field

Extremely cheeky spiders…

• Portia plucks on the web of another spider such as Argiope, playing the “harp” of the web to calm her down and lull her into a false sense of security (think Orpheus and Cereberus), then moves around the web making robotic motions so Portia is perceived to be part of the background by the tranquil web owner….
• Then Portia jumps, strikes, and it is all over for the web host

More cool spider facts

• Venom is pumped under pressure at high speed
• Male tarantulas have to hold fangs during mating
• Spider silk does not rot
• Web acts as a vibratory telegraph
• Spiders use LEGS to find out what has been caught: hairs on legs have open tips, licks it feet to find out if it likes what it caught, THEN chews a hole in the skin and dribbles in digestive juices
• Spiders can stand on water because they are so waxy, uses the water as its web, can gallop across water at speeds equivalent to 300 mph
• A jumping spider that jumps a foot is equivalent to a human leaping a city block
• Jumping spiders have hairs on hairs of feet so can land on vertical surfaces
• Jumping spiders let out safety line first before jumping
• Jumping spiders see world in full circle… the big eyes have the BACK part move side to side, builds an image

More cool spider facts

• Silk is liquid inside the spider: the molecules line up and then are expelled as silk, which can stretch to three times its original length
• Spider feet are oily which helps it not to get stuck in its own web
• Gluey beads on the web are actually snarls of spider silk
• One type of spider somesaults into the middle of the females jaws right in the middle of reproduction
• Some males pluck on certain strands of the web so the female knows it is her date and not her dinner
• Male jumping spiders may posture like sumo wrestlers then fight for dominance
• Some mother spiders regurgitate and let young drink from her jaws
• Swallowing spiders during sleep is a myth
• Spiders may use their fangs as walking sticks

More cool spider facts

• Robber spider moves on another’s web under cover of vibration or mimics vibration so web owner does not realize they are there
• Purse web spiders are trapdoor artists with a trip line
• When triangular webs are used, spiders release a tension thread and the prey suddenly becomes entangled
• Sydney funnel web spider, the large and cranky and dangerous Australian spider, is another family altogether and fortunately we don’t have to deal with it
• Both males and females have silk glands but only females have the kind of silk for egg sacs
• There are large COMMUNAL webs for certain kinds of spiders in the tropics

Spider medicine card; totem; spirit animal

• Spider: In Dreamtime, spider is a feminine power.
• She protects us from self-destructive behavior and warns us away from temptation.
• Never step on a spider, for it will surely bring misfortune to the dreamer.
• Spider's gifts are creativity, industriousness, design and artistry, for spider is an amazing spinner and weaver.
• The key is to remain relentless in the pursuit of our destiny.
• Spider also reminds us to be kind to the smallest gifts of the animal world.�

Spider in your oak apple gall? (spider fortune cookie)

• Bad weather year
• Ruined crops