Wolf Spiders (Family Lycosidae)

Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy

wolf spider (family Lycosidae) - Featured photo — Photo by Babette Kis

Overview

Wolf spiders (family Lycosidae) have a worldwide distribution, occurring on every continent except Antarctica. They are found in almost all habitats, including forests floors, prairies and meadows, marshes, and buildings. They have excellent vision and are solitary hunters. They do not spin a web but some species construct a silken tube to hide in. Most live on the ground and hunt at night.

There are about 2,888 species in 124 currently recognized genera of wolf spiders worldwide, about 240 species in 21 genera North America north of Mexico, and at least 37 species in Minnesota.

Description

Wolf spider (family Lycosidae) is a medium-sized to large spider. It is brown with light and dark stripes or spots that camouflages it in leaf litter. It is covered with short hairs. Like other spiders it has eight eyes in two rows. In the second row the lateral eyes are large, the middle eyes are very large.

Distribution

Sources

24, 30, 82.

Biodiversity occurrence data published by: Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas (accessed through the Minnesota Biodiversity Atlas Portal, bellatlas.umn.edu. Accessed 9/27/2026).

Lycosidae Sundevall, 1833 in Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Abreu, C., Acero P, A., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (2026-08-26 XR). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgyy9

Taxonomy

Class

Arachnida (Arachnids)

Order

Araneae (Spiders)

Suborder

Araneomorphae (Typical Spiders)

Infraorder

Entelegynae

Zoosection

Rta clade (RTA Clade Spiders)

Zoosubsection

Oval calamistrum clade (Oval Calamistrum Clade Spiders)

Superfamily

Lycosoidea (Wolf Spiders and Allies)

Subordinate Taxa

Alopecosa spp.

Arctosa spp. (Bear Spiders)

Geolycosa spp. (Burrowing wolf Spiders)

Gladicosa spp. (Sword Wolf Spiders)

Hogna spp.

Pardosa spp. (Thin-legged Wolf Spiders)

Pirata spp. (Pirate Wolf Spiders)

Piratula spp.

Rabidosa spp.

Schizocosa spp. (Brush-leggeed Spiders)

Tigrosa spp.

Trochosa spp.

Synonyms

Common Names

wolf spiders

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Luciearl

Spider

Lycosidae spp. wolf spiders

Lycosidae sp., wolf spider, about 10mm long, found on Barnes Prairie, Racine Co., WI. Photos were taken on May 22, 2021.

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Luciearl
9/25/2026

Location: Lake Shore, MN

Dan W. Andree
5/18/2025

Location: Norman Co. Mn.

I thought I seen something move on the ground and looked closer and seen it was a spider of some kind. It’s the same color as the dead grass/vegetation and has a dark marking on its abdomen. It’s located off to the right of the green plant that is near the center of the photo. 5-18-25

Alfredo Colon
6/12/2024