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Photo#584212
Dark Fishing Spider? - Dolomedes tenebrosus

Dark Fishing Spider? - Dolomedes tenebrosus
Shelby Forest, Shelby County, Tennessee, USA
April 14, 2010
Size: 4 inches or so
This spider (body + legs) is almost the size of a hand! I found it in our bathtub, so I had ample time to photograph it as it couldn't climb out. We live deep in bottomland hardwood forest near the Mississippi, and it abounds with insects. This must have wandered in after prey. I released it outdoors; it did not seem aggressive.

Moved
Moved from Fishing Spiders.

Dolomedes
I'm not sure if this is D. tenebrosus or if it could be Dolomedes okefinokensis. Thanks for the measurement it does help sometimes. However in the future if you can provide it without the legs included and in millimeters that will help us with IDing. Thanks!

Moved
Moved from ID Request.

...
bottomland hardwood forest near the Mississippi-- sounds like paradise to me

 
Paradise - except for
all the bugs! That is the ones that like to feed on humans. I have suffered many "chigger" bites all over my body - like for example after one of my photo sessions of a beautiful luna moth found deep in the woods on a summer's day. Did not know I was concurrently hosting a colony that would then itch for days. This is not to mention the ticks, highest incidence of heartworm in dogs, horrendous hordes of "buffalo gnats" hovering around your head in spring, and the numerous mosquitoes that love me this fall. There IS a price to pay - but that is why the birds and the other bugs love it here! Gorgeous woods -- best kept secret in the US. But not for the intrepid in the summer.

 
bet the water snake diversit
bet the water snake diversity is good there. maybe a few cottonmouths to boot. well keep the local bug pics coming. cheers

yes. fishing spider
Dolomedes sp 4 inch legspan! they get big. awesome spiders

 
Maybe somewhat rare?
I have not seen one since, either in or outdoors....

Thanks for the ID!

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