Paul Day
09-14-2002, 02:44 PM
Carolina Wolf Spider
When people e-mail me with a picture of what they claim to
be a Carolina Wolf Spider, most of the time it turns out to be some smaller wolf spider, or a large fishing spider (mostly Dolomedes teneberosus). So hereis a picture of a 4 inch, adult female Hogna carolinensis. This is a beaut! And it
IS the best true spider, I don¡¦t care what anyone says (hehe). They are the prettiest, and most ¡§intense¡¨ looking true spiders out there!
Hogna helluo (a wolf spider claimed to be a Carolina in a previous post) is a medium sized wolf spider common to the Eastern U.S. which can obtain a 2.5 inch legspan, and comes in several different color morphs. While it is certainly a wonderful find, you aint seen nothing yet until you¡¦ve come across a big Carolina! Another similar looking spider to Helluo is Hogna aspersa, which has the same stripe down the carapace, but is much darker, velvety looking, and has distinct ¡§tiger¡¨ banding on the legs, and I think can get slightly bigger. Hogna aspersa spiderlings can be quite beautifulƒº.
Now, back in the hobby, I see wolf spiders are still misunderstood by the average person and being misidentified by the masses. I was in a bug museum the other day and they had a Carolina Wolf Spider misidentified as a Rabid! I was shocked! Then I realized what a HUGE DORK I was¡K hehe. Don¡¦t worry, ¡§A Wolf In The Shadows¡¨ will be back in a different form in the next few months.
Pauly
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/jadzia006.jpg
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/jaddelisize.jpg
Adult Female Hogna Carolinensis (Carolina Wolf Spider) (4 inch)
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/martoklegacy.jpg
Adult Male Hogna Carolinensis (4 inch)... missing some legs cause it's an old one.
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/conbert001.jpg
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/rupert001.jpg
Female and a male Hogna helluo... female about 2 inches, the male is about 1.5 inches.
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/jasmine002.jpg
Hogna helluo female, rarer "greenish yellow" morph.This is a big one at 2.5 inches.
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/blacky002.jpg
This is a Hogna aspersa, the "Tiger" wolf spider. Notice it's more intense black color, and plasticish rings around each legbase. It is a rarer and prettier spider than helluo. This one measures at 2.5 inches.
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/haspersatest.jpg
This is an H. aspersa, how Juv. and males look, which is very pretty. Note the tiger banding around the legs. This happens to be a spiderling from the previous female which grew up to be a male.
Anyway, enjoy your day. Hope this clears up some "Hogna carolinensis" problems.
Pauly
When people e-mail me with a picture of what they claim to
be a Carolina Wolf Spider, most of the time it turns out to be some smaller wolf spider, or a large fishing spider (mostly Dolomedes teneberosus). So hereis a picture of a 4 inch, adult female Hogna carolinensis. This is a beaut! And it
IS the best true spider, I don¡¦t care what anyone says (hehe). They are the prettiest, and most ¡§intense¡¨ looking true spiders out there!
Hogna helluo (a wolf spider claimed to be a Carolina in a previous post) is a medium sized wolf spider common to the Eastern U.S. which can obtain a 2.5 inch legspan, and comes in several different color morphs. While it is certainly a wonderful find, you aint seen nothing yet until you¡¦ve come across a big Carolina! Another similar looking spider to Helluo is Hogna aspersa, which has the same stripe down the carapace, but is much darker, velvety looking, and has distinct ¡§tiger¡¨ banding on the legs, and I think can get slightly bigger. Hogna aspersa spiderlings can be quite beautifulƒº.
Now, back in the hobby, I see wolf spiders are still misunderstood by the average person and being misidentified by the masses. I was in a bug museum the other day and they had a Carolina Wolf Spider misidentified as a Rabid! I was shocked! Then I realized what a HUGE DORK I was¡K hehe. Don¡¦t worry, ¡§A Wolf In The Shadows¡¨ will be back in a different form in the next few months.
Pauly
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/jadzia006.jpg
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/jaddelisize.jpg
Adult Female Hogna Carolinensis (Carolina Wolf Spider) (4 inch)
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/martoklegacy.jpg
Adult Male Hogna Carolinensis (4 inch)... missing some legs cause it's an old one.
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/conbert001.jpg
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/rupert001.jpg
Female and a male Hogna helluo... female about 2 inches, the male is about 1.5 inches.
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/jasmine002.jpg
Hogna helluo female, rarer "greenish yellow" morph.This is a big one at 2.5 inches.
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/blacky002.jpg
This is a Hogna aspersa, the "Tiger" wolf spider. Notice it's more intense black color, and plasticish rings around each legbase. It is a rarer and prettier spider than helluo. This one measures at 2.5 inches.
http://www.losingmylycosa.com/wolfspiders2/haspersatest.jpg
This is an H. aspersa, how Juv. and males look, which is very pretty. Note the tiger banding around the legs. This happens to be a spiderling from the previous female which grew up to be a male.
Anyway, enjoy your day. Hope this clears up some "Hogna carolinensis" problems.
Pauly