Search Results - Field Guide

Nursery web spiders build silken tents in plants to protect their egg sacs, then stand guard until the hatchlings are ready to disperse. Large and velvety, nursery web spiders have long legs and variable color patterns.

Purseweb spiders build tubular webs attached to the bases of trees. Because these are easily overlooked, most people usually only see the males, which walk around in the open in early summer as they seek mates.

Whitebanded fishing spiders are often seen on tree trunks, walls, or other vertical surfaces, sometimes far from water. The coloration and markings can vary, but many individuals have an olive-green cast that helps them blend in with mosses and lichens. Note the bristly legs.

A widespread species, the barn spider commonly builds its webs in woods and on the eaves of barns, houses, and similar structures.

The dark fishing spider often evokes alarm because of its large size. This mottled black and brown spider is often misidentified. It is not always found near permanent water.

The dotted wolf spider has a solid brown stripe running down the middle of the abdomen, seen from above. Like other wolf spiders, females have strong maternal instincts, carrying their spiderlings around on their back until they can be on their own.

The rabid wolf spider, despite its scary name, is harmless to people and is absolutely not rabid. It commonly hides in leaf litter and sometimes gets into houses.

A speckled wolf spider usually seems larger than it actually is. It's one of Missouri's more common species of wolf spiders. Mothers have remarkable maternal instincts and are often seen carrying their young around on their abdomen.