Categories

one last try (this is #4!) Large spider
Bugman,
I really think this could be a spider of interest to your viewers (and you??)… thought I’d give it one more try (4th attempt!). I’ve looked through several sites and books but haven’t been able to come up with an identity except for thinking it’s some kind of Wolf spider (but not hairy as in most of the pictures I’ve come across). These photo’s were taken late one night over a year ago where she was standing next to me while I was working on my table saw. I think she’s amazing (safe assumption it’s a she??) and I would like to know more about her. It’s not often you come across a spider of this size, especially here in Boulder, Colorado. Since I have a large male cat (he eats all the bugs / spiders he’s come across… and I have seen several black widows here as well – photo included), I needed to safely relocate her outside near our building. Thanks once again ahead of time…
Jon Ehrlich

Hi Jon,
We always feel badly when we hear that someone felt ignored and had to write back a second time, but your case is unconscionable. Please accept our apology. Your photo is lacking in detail, but we believe this may be a Tube Trapdoor Spider in the family Nemesiidae as depicted on BugGuide. Generally it is the male Trapdoor Spider that wanders in search of a mate. Since we are not certain this identification is correct, perhaps a knowledgeable reader can provide a correct identification. Please list Trapdoor Spider in the subject line.

Update: (07/05/2008) Trapdoor Spider
Hi Daniel, At this point I think you probably know more about spiders than I do, but I am wondering if this could be the Burrowing Wolf Spider, shown as a Colorado species at http://www.ext.colostate.edu/PTLK/1485f2a.html With general info at http://www.ext.colostate.edu/PTLK/1485.html It does claim that wolf spiders are the largest spiders in Colorado. And you probably have a higher resolution image than the version on WTB, so I can’t really see the face and the eyes well, but the legs in Jon’s photo sure looks like the legs in the picture of the burrowing wolf spider defending its nest which is near the bottom of the Wikipedia article at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolf_spider Best,
Susan H.

Ed. Note: Susan requested the full sized file so she could inspect it more closely. Here is her conclusion.
Update: (07/07/2008)
Yes, the photo is a bit blurry, but the spider does look as if it has two small eyes on top, two nice large eyes facing forward, and as if it could maybe have 4 small ones in a row underneath the two big ones. If that is so, that would make it a wolf spider. I would definitely think it is a male spider in the genus Geolycosus, a Burrowing Wolf spider. In any case it really is a great-looking spider!
Susan

Related Posts

• 
  (07/09/2005)
  Maternal Wolf Spider and Brood
• 
  (05/13/2006)
  Burrowing Wolf Spider
• 
  (02/20/2007)
  Burrowing Wolf Spider
• 
  (09/12/2008)
  Wolf Spider