Adult female trapdoor spider, of the genus Myrmekiaphila. This species appears to be highly abundant around my home, and are usually found living in sunny areas where open fields connect with the woods. I have counted well over a dozen of them within a 50 foot stretch along the edge of our woods. I was astounded at how many existed within such a small area! They are easiest to find at night, as this is when they usually sit at the entrance of their wide-open burrows. They are apparently very resistent to cold (at least compared to the other arachnids in our area), because I have observed them on numerous occasions to be sitting at their burrow entrances awaiting prey when the temperature was as low as the mid-30's! They can sometimes be teased from their burrows using a piece of straw, which is how I photographed this particular individual. Unfortunately, their burrows are closed during the day, making them extremely hard to find as a result. I had to mark off the location of this particular burrow at night just to find where it was the next day. I later dug this spider from its burrow with the intention of raising it in captivity. What I discovered in the excavation was astounding. The burrow descended at a slight angle into the ground and had a maximum depth of about 8-9 inches. It was heavily lined with silk. The bottom of the burrow shaft emptied out into a larger, less silkened chamber. This chamber contained the remnants of previous meals, including the noticable remains of a male trapdoor spider. The female was nowhere in the main burrow shaft. Perplexed, I continued careful investigation of the burrow and found that about halfway down the burrow, a second chamber branched off that was closed by another sikened lid. Within this concealed chamber was the female, along with a small brood of spiderlings! The female was highly defensive and aggressive, and assumed the classic mygalamorph threat stance with front legs raised and fangs bared. I removed the female along with the spiderlings and have been raising them successfully in captivity.