Wolf Spider? - Schizocosa - Duval County, Florida, USA February 26, 2012
I'm pretty sure this is a type of wolf spider because of the eye arangement and the fact that I've seen another of her kind carry her babies on her back, but I've been searching for years, (Litteraly) for what "Type," she is and have never found a good match. Could someone help me place her?
Her name is Makawi, which is a Navajo name meaning, "Mothering." Yes, I name just about everything for documentation purposes, even if I don't have more than a day's interaction with them. I rotate various small hunting spiders in and out of my cricket terrarium to keep these pesty little flies that colonized it under control. They do a good job; when I have a spider, the flies are few, when I don't, they're back with a vengeance! I never keep one spider for too long and release them back into the wild after some time depending on the situation. The previous occupant was an injured Hacklemesh Weaver whom I'm taking care of until he grows his missing legs back, but the crickets were harassing him so now he has his own temporary home and Makawi now has the job of Terrarium Huntress until her next molt. :) This arrangment works well because it allows me to learn about them without taking away their freedom for too long, and the flies dissapear to boot! BTW, I say next molt, because it turns out that a very kind person on here told me how to distinguish an immature female spider. Upon inspection of the ventral photo she does not seem to possess an epigynum. Incidentally, she's very non-aggressive and eats well off of tweezers.
Be Well and God Bless
Images of this individual: tag all Contributed by Mamata Polle on 27 February, 2012 - 2:51am Last updated 25 February, 2020 - 8:41am |