Tigrosa helluo

Wetland giant wolf spider

This burrow-dwelling wolf spider hunts without a web, and females carry their egg sac on their spinnerets until it hatches, then carry the spiderlings on their back.

Where	Wet woods, marshes and fields
Size	Female up to 21 mm, male about 12 mm body length
When	March to October

The wetland giant wolf spider is a large, robust hunter with a brown carapace marked by a bold yellow stripe running from its eyes back across the head, and black spots on the underside of the abdomen. Females are noticeably larger than males, with reddish brown legs, while males have plain yellow legs.

It hunts by ambush rather than by web, often sheltering under a stone or board near water and waiting nearby for passing prey. Found in wet woods, marshes and grassy fields across the eastern half of the United States and into southern Canada and Mexico, it hunts mainly at night and is often noticed in autumn, when it wanders into buildings seeking shelter.

Traits

Habitat

Wetland

Colour

Brown, Yellow, Black

Active

Night

To people

This large wolf spider is not aggressive and rarely bites people; it is not dangerous to have around, even though its size looks intimidating.

Activity through the year

JFMAMJJASOND

Often confused with

Rabid wolf spiderOpen entry ›

Rabidosa rabida

Shows a row of slanted pale tan or orange spots along the abdomen and pale eyebrow-like marks behind the eyes, rather than the solid yellow stripe down the head and black-spotted underside of the wetland giant wolf spider.