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The Wild Pest
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Spiders

Eight-legged engineers. Not insects — but firmly On File.

42 on file

On File
A Brazilian wandering spider (Phoneutria nigriventer), brown body with red mouthparts, raised front legs in alert posture.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs87
Alias
Phoneutria nigriventer

Brazilian Wandering Spider

World's most venomous spider. Doesn't build webs — wanders. Found in shoes, banana shipments.

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On File
A brown recluse spider (Loxosceles reclusa), pale brown body with the distinctive violin-shaped marking.
Outlaw
Six Legs79
Alias
Loxosceles reclusa

Brown Recluse

America's most-feared bite. Also America's most-misdiagnosed bite.

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On File
A diving bell spider (Argyroneta aquatica) inside its silver air-filled silk dome underwater.
Curious
Six Legs79
Alias
Argyroneta aquatica

Diving Bell Spider

Only spider that lives entirely underwater. Builds its own scuba tank out of silk.

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On File
A giant huntsman spider (Heteropoda maxima) inside a Laotian cave, showing the long flat-set legs and brown coloration.
Curious
Six Legs74
Alias
Heteropoda maxima

Giant Huntsman Spider

Largest spider in the world by leg span — 30 cm. Runs sideways. Doesn't bother you.

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On File
A goliath birdeater tarantula (Theraphosa blondi) at the entrance to its burrow on a rainforest floor.
Outlaw
Six Legs82
Alias
Theraphosa blondi

Goliath Birdeater

Largest spider on Earth by weight. Defends itself by hissing and flicking itch-bombs.

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On File
A regal jumping spider (Phidippus regius), large forward-facing eyes, fuzzy body, vivid green chelicerae.
Curious
Six Legs75
Alias
Phidippus regius

Regal Jumping Spider

Recognizes human faces. Plans ambush routes. Probably dreams.

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On File
A male peacock spider (Maratus volans) displaying its iridescent abdominal fan.
Curious
Six Legs72
Alias
Maratus volans

Peacock Spider

Tiny dancing spider. Iridescent fan. Has its own choreography.

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On File
A Sydney funnel-web spider (Atrax robustus), glossy black body, raised front legs in defensive posture.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs88
Alias
Atrax robustus

Sydney Funnel-Web Spider

Sydney's only deadly spider. Venom kills humans but barely affects dogs. Antivenom has stopped every death since 1981.

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On File
A western black widow (Latrodectus hesperus) hanging in her web, red hourglass marking visible on the underside.
Outlaw
Six Legs84
Alias
Latrodectus hesperus

Western Black Widow

Red hourglass on a black mirror. Venom 15× rattlesnake by weight. Doesn't always eat the male.

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On File
An ogre-faced spider (Deinopis spinosa) hanging upside down with a silken net stretched between her front legs.
Curious
Six Legs79
Alias
Deinopis spinosa

Ogre-Faced Spider

Casts a silken net at prey like a fisherman. Sees in starlight. Hears with her legs.

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On File
A California trapdoor spider (Bothriocyrtum californicum), dark glossy body emerging from her burrow.
Curious
Six Legs76
Alias
Bothriocyrtum californicum

California Trapdoor Spider

Lives in a burrow with a hinged camouflaged door. Lived 43 years (longest spider ever).

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On File
A Carolina wolf spider (Hogna carolinensis), large brown body with mottled pattern, hairy legs, eight reflective eyes.
Curious
Six Legs70
Alias
Hogna carolinensis

Carolina Wolf Spider

Mom carries hundreds of babies on her back. Eyes glow back at flashlights from a hundred meters away.

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On File
A goldenrod crab spider (Misumena vatia), pale yellow body with two long front-leg pairs spread crab-like on a yellow flower.
Curious
Six Legs79
Alias
Misumena vatia

Goldenrod Crab Spider

Changes color from white to yellow over weeks. Ambushes bees on flowers. No web.

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On File
A golden silk orb-weaver (Trichonephila clavipes), large female with elongated body and tufted legs at the center of a golden-colored web.
Curious
Six Legs84
Alias
Trichonephila clavipes

Golden Silk Orb-Weaver

Spins golden silk strong as kevlar. The 2009 spider-silk cape took 1.2 million spiders.

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On File
A bowl and doily weaver spider (Frontinella communis), small dark brown spider with white markings along the abdomen sides hanging upside-down in a bowl-shaped silk web, eight legs, top view.
Beneficial
Six Legs75
Alias
Frontinella communis

Bowl and Doily Weaver

Constructs unique BOWL-AND-DOILY WEB ARCHITECTURE. Spider hangs upside-down between the two structures.

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On File
A dark fishing spider (Dolomedes tenebrosus), large brown-and-black spider with intricate camouflage markings on the dorsal abdomen and banded legs, eight legs, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs76
Alias
Dolomedes tenebrosus

Dark Fishing Spider

Largest house-invading spider in eastern NA. 9 cm leg span. Looks terrifying but harmless.

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On File
A female goldenrod crab spider (Misumena vatia), small bright yellow spider with two front pairs of legs much longer than the rear pairs, eight legs, top view on a flower.
Beneficial
Six Legs76
Alias
Misumena vatia

Goldenrod Crab Spider

Color-changing CHAMELEON spider. Switches between WHITE and YELLOW to match flower color. Walks sideways like a crab.

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On File
A grass spider (Agelenopsis pennsylvanica), tan-brown spider with two darker longitudinal stripes running down the cephalothorax, pale undersides, and long legs, eight legs, top view.
Beneficial
Six Legs74
Alias
Agelenopsis pennsylvanica

Grass Spider

Funnel-web spider with horizontal sheet web. Among the FASTEST running spiders in NA — 60 cm/sec sprint.

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On File
A female northern black widow (Latrodectus variolus), shiny jet-black spider with broken red hourglass marking and row of red-or-yellow spots along the dorsal midline of the abdomen, eight legs, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs84
Alias
Latrodectus variolus

Northern Black Widow

Eastern NA black widow. 'Broken' RED HOURGLASS marking. Potent neurotoxic venom (alpha-latrotoxin).

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On File
A six-eyed sand spider (Sicarius hahni), tan-brown desert spider with six eyes (instead of typical eight) and short flattened legs, eight legs, top view.
Apex Outlaw
Six Legs91
Alias
Sicarius hahni

Six-Eyed Sand Spider

MOST POTENT spider venom on Earth (drop-for-drop). Buries herself in sand. Almost never bites humans.

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On File
A nursery web spider (Pisaurina mira), tan-brown spider with darker longitudinal band running down the dorsal abdomen, eight legs, top view.
Beneficial
Six Legs75
Alias
Pisaurina mira

Nursery Web Spider

Males offer FOOD GIFTS to females during mating. Females build NURSERY WEBS for hatching spiderlings.

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On File
A Carolina wolf spider (Hogna carolinensis), large brown wolf spider with darker markings on the body and legs, eight legs, top view.
Outlaw
Six Legs79
Alias
Hogna carolinensis

Carolina Wolf Spider

LARGEST wolf spider in NA. State spider of SC. Mothers carry dozens of spiderlings on her back.

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On File
A female marbled orbweaver spider (Araneus marmoreus), large bright orange-and-brown marbled abdomen with dark markings, eight legs, top view.
Beneficial
Six Legs72
Alias
Araneus marmoreus

Marbled Orbweaver

The 'pumpkin spider' — bright orange-and-brown marbled abdomen looks like a tiny jack-o-lantern.

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On File
A bold jumping spider (Phidippus audax), jet-black body with white-marked abdomen and brilliant iridescent green-blue chelicerae, eight legs, dorsal view.
Beneficial
Six Legs80
Alias
Phidippus audax

Bold Jumping Spider

Most familiar US jumping spider. Iridescent green-blue chelicerae. Recent research shows she DREAMS.

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On File
A spinybacked orb-weaver spider (Gasteracantha cancriformis), bright white abdomen with six sharp red spikes projecting from the margins, eight legs, at the center of an orb web.
Beneficial
Six Legs79
Alias
Gasteracantha cancriformis

Spinybacked Orb-Weaver

Crab-shell-shaped abdomen with SIX SHARP SPIKES. Bright colors. Web tufts as visual bird warnings.

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On File
A yellow sac spider (Cheiracanthium inclusum), small pale yellow to greenish-tan spider with darker palps and chelicerae, eight legs, dorsal view.
Outlaw
Six Legs76
Alias
Cheiracanthium inclusum

Yellow Sac Spider

Most common indoor spider in NA. Cause of most 'spider bite' reports. CHEWS through fuel-system plastic.

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On File
A Mediterranean recluse spider (Loxosceles rufescens), light tan to brown spider with characteristic dark violin-shaped marking on the carapace, eight legs, dorsal view.
Outlaw
Six Legs77
Alias
Loxosceles rufescens

Mediterranean Recluse

Most invasive recluse spider on Earth. Sphingomyelinase D venom causes necrotic skin lesions.

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On File
A cookie cutter spider (Cyclocosmia ricketti), brown spider with rear of abdomen flattened into a disc-shaped plate marked with intricate radiating ridges resembling a stamped coin.
Curious
Six Legs84
Alias
Cyclocosmia ricketti

Cookie Cutter Spider

Rear is flattened into a HARDENED DISC marked like a coin. Uses the disc as a literal door to seal her burrow.

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On File
A European garden spider (Araneus diadematus), brown-tan female with distinctive white cross-shaped pattern of dorsal spots on the abdomen, eight legs at the center of an orb web.
Beneficial
Six Legs73
Alias
Araneus diadematus

European Garden Spider (Cross Spider)

European garden orb-weaver. White cross on her back. First spider to build a web in space (1973).

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On File
A zebra jumping spider (Salticus scenicus), small black-and-white striped jumping spider with large forward-facing principal eyes, eight legs.
Beneficial
Six Legs73
Alias
Salticus scenicus

Zebra Jumping Spider

Black-and-white striped jumping spider on your sunny windowsill. Watches you with puppy-dog eyes.

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On File
A pink-toe tarantula (Avicularia avicularia), black-bodied tarantula with dramatic pink-tipped feet on all eight legs, on a tree branch.
Curious
Six Legs73
Alias
Avicularia avicularia

Pink-Toe Tarantula

Tree-dwelling tarantula with pink feet. Defends by SHOOTING fecal matter up to a meter.

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On File
A Chilean rose hair tarantula (Grammostola rosea), rich brown body covered in fine rosy-pink hairs, eight stocky legs, dorsal view.
Curious
Six Legs71
Alias
Grammostola rosea

Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula

Most popular pet tarantula in the world. Gentle. Goes months without food. Venom yields cardiac drug candidate.

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On File
A Darwin's bark spider (Caerostris darwini), large brown spider with intricate body sculpting at the center of an enormous orb web spanning a river gap.
Curious
Six Legs88
Alias
Caerostris darwini

Darwin's Bark Spider

Strongest natural material on Earth. Silk 10× tougher than kevlar. Webs span 25 meters across rivers.

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On File
An ant-mimicking spider (Myrmarachne formicaria), elongated body resembling an ant with first pair of legs raised in antenna position.
Curious
Six Legs81
Alias
Myrmarachne formicaria

Ant-Mimicking Spider

Spider that walks, smells, and waves antennae like an ant. Some species hunt the ants she mimics.

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On File
A black-and-yellow garden spider (Argiope aurantia), female with bold black-and-yellow striped abdomen at the center of an orb web with a thick white zigzag stabilimentum.
Beneficial
Six Legs77
Alias
Argiope aurantia

Black-and-Yellow Garden Spider

Garden zigzag-web spider. The cultural inspiration for Charlotte's Web. Stabilimentum function still debated.

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On File
A Gooty sapphire tarantula (Poecilotheria metallica), brilliant cobalt-blue iridescent body and legs with intricate cream-and-gold geometric pattern.
Curious
Six Legs80
Alias
Poecilotheria metallica

Gooty Sapphire Tarantula

Brilliant cobalt-blue iridescent. Endemic to one 100 km² Indian forest. Critically Endangered.

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On File
A brown widow (Latrodectus geometricus), mottled brown-and-tan female with rounded abdomen showing geometric markings and orange-red hourglass underneath.
Outlaw
Six Legs77
Alias
Latrodectus geometricus

Brown Widow

Black widow's invasive displacing sister. Spikier egg sac. Bite is milder despite stronger venom drop-for-drop.

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On File
A Mexican red-knee tarantula (Brachypelma hamorii), large black tarantula with bright orange-red knee markings on each leg, eight legs spread evenly.
Curious
Six Legs73
Alias
Brachypelma hamorii

Mexican Red-knee Tarantula

The Indiana Jones tarantula. 30-year lifespan. CITES-protected. Gentle and famous.

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On File
A Portia jumping spider (Portia fimbriata), small mottled brown body with leg tufts and large forward-facing principal eyes.
Curious
Six Legs82
Alias
Portia fimbriata

Portia Spider

Smartest invertebrate on Earth. Hunts spiders using deception, detours, and multi-step planning.

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On File
A cellar spider (Pholcus phalangioides), small pale gray-brown body with extraordinarily long thin legs splayed out from a tangled web.
Beneficial
Six Legs69
Alias
Pholcus phalangioides

Cellar Spider

The basement 'daddy long legs.' Hunts and kills black widows. The viral venom myth is false.

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On File
A six-spotted fishing spider (Dolomedes triton), brown body with six pale spots on the abdomen and long legs spread on water surface.
Curious
Six Legs79
Alias
Dolomedes triton

Six-Spotted Fishing Spider

Walks on water. Catches fish. Dives underwater with an air-bubble respirator.

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On File
A spitting spider (Scytodes thoracica), small pale yellow-and-brown spider with humped cephalothorax and long thin legs.
Curious
Six Legs80
Alias
Scytodes thoracica

Spitting Spider

Spits sticky-and-venomous silk-glue at prey from 1 cm away. Fires in 1.4 milliseconds.

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