Florida is home to hundreds of species of spider, varying in size, color, and species.
Based on the most common observations over the years, we have put a list together of the 60 most common spiders you will come across in Florida.
The 60 most common spiders in Florida you may come across, includes:
Table of Contents
1. Spinybacked Orbweaver
Scientific name: Gasteracantha cancriformis.
Common name: Spinybacked orbweaver.
The spinybacked orbweaver is a brightly colored spider with six prominent spines on its belly, which is shell-like in nature.
They are sometimes referred to as crab spiders, due to their shape.
Males are smaller than females, they do not have the bright colors or the spines on their bellies.
These spiders are harmless to humans, even though they will try and give you a bite if provoked.
2. Golden Silk Spider
Scientific name: Trichonephila clavipes.
Common name: golden silk orb-weaver, golden silk spider, banana spider.
The golden silk spider is one of the largest non-tarantula spiders in North America, which can grow to 4cm when fully grown.
Females are larger and brighter than males.
The female has a silver-white head with an orange to brown belly. They have two rows of white to yellow spots.
As the spider ages, its belly changes color.
Legs are dark yellow with brown bands.
Males are much smaller, around a quarter of the size of the female, and are slender in build. Males are dark brown with no silver-white or yellow coloration.
3. Mabel Orchard Orbweaver
Scientific name: Leucauge argyrobapta.
Common name: Mabel’s orchard orb weaver.
The Mabel orchard orbweaver is a long-jawed orb weaver and is very common in Florida.
They are adapted to a range of habitats and climates.
They are excellent for pest control and have been used in agriculture over the years to reduce pests that could destroy crops.
These orb weavers are hosts of wasp larvae, where the spider is paralyzed and the wasp lays their eggs on them. As the wasp larvae grow, they feed off the spider.
4. Orchard Orb Weaver
Scientific name: Leucauge argyra.
Common name: Orchard orb weaver.
This spider is a host to the Puerto Rican parasitoid wasp.
They are colonial species with spiders maintaining territories within their colony. The colonies range from larger spiders occupying higher web positions, compared to smaller spiders, that occupy the lower web positions.
This spider species has three lines that run parallel on their belly and who bend inward and then run parallel again, these markings can vary from one individual to the next.
5. Yellow Garden Spider
Scientific name: Argiope aurantia.
Common name: yellow garden spider, black and yellow garden spider, golden garden spider, writing spider, zigzag spider, zipper spider, corn spider, banana spider, Steeler spider, McKinley spider.
The yellow garden spider has distinct black and yellow markings on the belly and their heads are almost completely white.
Females are larger than the males with females growing to 2.8cm (1.10 inches) and males growing to 9mm (0.35 inches).
The yellow garden spider will bite if provoked or disturbed, but they are harmless to humans and their bite is no worse than a bee sting.
6. Green Lynx Spider
Scientific name: Peucetia viridans.
Common name: green lynx spider.
The green lynx spider can grow up to 2.2 cm (0.87 inches) for females and 1.2cm (0.47 inches) for males.
They have a red patch right between the eyes and some red spotting on their bodies.
Their eyes have white hairs and their abdomen has six chevrons with the points facing forward.
They have yellow and black legs.
They often change color from green to pale yellow with streaks of red later in the season.
Females that are gravid will change their color to blend in with their environment.
7. Magnolia Green Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Lyssomanes viridis.
Common name: magnolia green jumper.
This is a small jumping spider with females growing to around 8mm and males to around 6mm.
They are mostly a pale, almost translucent green with a small fringe of red, orange, yellow, or white scales on the crown of the head.
Their legs are long when compared to their bodies, which are used for jumping, allowing them to jump up to four times their body length.
They have brightly colored pincers which are used as weapons.
8. Gray Wall Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Menemerus bivittatus.
Common name: gray wall jumper.
The gray wall jumping spider is a flattened spider with white to gray hairs and dark brown bristles near its eyes.
They grow to around 9mm with males being smaller than the female.
Males have a black dorsal stripe with a brown to white stride on the side of their belly.
Females are paler in color, usually more brown with two black bands and a thin white stripe on their belly.
9. Tropical Orbweaver
Scientific name: Eriophora ravilla.
Common name: tropical orb weaver.
Tropical orbweavers are harmless spiders found in Florida that comes in a variety of colors and are usually not that easy to identify.
Sometimes it can be brown without markings, making it hard to identify against the spotted orb weavers.
Females are larger than males, their venom is harmless to humans, with bites being no worse than a bee sting.
10. Regal Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Phidippus regius.
Common name: regal jumping spider.
Regal jumping spiders grow to 2.2cm (0.87 inches) in females and 1.8cm (0.71 inches) in males.
Males and females can be told apart with males being black with a pattern of white stripes and spots.
Females have a similar pattern, but range in color from bright orange to gray.
They have three spots on their belly that look like a smiley face. At the end of the abdomen, they have two small round spots and a larger triangle, which looks like a mouth.
They are not dangerous to humans are hesitant to bite, but if they do bite, you can expect some localized pain and swelling, which can be relieved with a cold compress.
11. Twin-flagged Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Anasaitis canosa.
Common name: twin-flagged jumping spider.
The twin flagged jumping spider has what looks like a fifth pair of legs on its face, but these are not legs, but rather used to help the spider identify its surroundings.
These spiders are mostly black and have up to four white marks on their head. Their belly comes to a point with a white dash in the center. Their legs are light in color with dark banding.
They are excellent jumpers and pounce on their prey, they do not rely on a web to catch their food.
These spiders are always busy and can be seen on the forest floor, among leaf litter and rocks.
They are fast and will jump to escape threats.
They are not dangerous to humans.
12. Silver Garden Orbweaver
Scientific name: Argiope argentata.
Common name: silver argiope, silver garden orbweavers.
The silver garden orbweavers female is larger than the male with a female’s average size being around 1.2cm, which is about three times the size of the males from this spider family.
They have a UV light reflector on the top of their bodies, which is used to spin UV silk webs which attract their prey.
Interestingly, this spider has two sets of eyes, a primary and secondary set.
Their belly is dark brown with a yellow stripe.
13. Red-femured Spotted Orbweaver
Scientific name: Neoscona domiciliorum.
Common name: spotted orbweaver, redfemured spotted orbweaver.
Adult red-femured spotted orbweavers can be identified by their bright yellow or white marking on their belly with a broad stripe on either side and a white band near the front.
Their legs are red at the first segment and then followed with pale gray and black banding.
Their abdomen is dark with four white spots and a red tip.
Females can grow up to 0.63 inches (1.6cm) in length and have short gray hairs covering their bodies, males on the other hand are around 0.31 inches (8mm) in length.
14. Pantropical Huntsman Spider
Scientific name: Heteropoda venatoria.
Common name: Pantropical huntsman spider, giant crab spider, cane spider.
This spider is often confused for a tarantula, due to its size. They are known to grow large, up to 11.8 inches (30cm) in length.
They are mostly brown or gray with black and white markings on their belly and red patches on their mouth.
They are mostly encountered in garages and sheds, where they are undisturbed.
They are not dangerous to humans a bite is more irritating than painful.
Further Reading:
15. Brown Widow
Scientific name: Latrodectus geometricus.
Common name: brown widow, brown button spider, grey widow, brown black widow, house button spider, geometric button spider.
Brown widow spiders are lighter than the black widow, ranging from a black to dark brown with shades of gray.
They have a distinct hourglass shape on their belly, which is yellow or orange in color, their legs have stripes.
They have a venom that acts on the nerve endings, though the brown widow is not as dangerous as the black widow.
The toxin is usually confined to the bite area and the surrounding tissues. Pain, swelling, and irritation can be expected at the bite site, which can be relieved with a cold compress.
If any allergic reactions occur, such as the swelling of the face and throat, then immediate medical treatment must to sought.
16. Six-spotted Fishing Spider
Scientific name: Dolomedes triton.
Common name: six-spotted fishing spider, dock spider.
The six-spotted fishing spider can be identified by its distinctive markings and large size
They have eight eyes with excellent vision and a brown to gray body.
Their belly is light with spots and light lines that run down the side of the belly.
As with most spiders, the female is larger, growing to around 2.4 inches (6cm) in length. Males, on the other hand, grow to around 0.51 inches (1.3cm) in length.
17. Banded Garden Spider
Scientific name: Argiope trifasciata.
Common name: banded garden spider, banded orb weaving spider.
The banded garden spider is also known as the banded orb-weaving spider and is common in North America.
They usually appear during the fall, when temperatures start to drop.
They create large webs of around 60cm in diameter with the web length determined by the size of the spider. Webs can reach up to two meters in length. Their webs are built between garden beds and plants.
They sit in their webs, upside down, as they wait for prey to get caught.
Colors vary from black with white and yellow bands to red with white bands. They get darker as they age with legs being banded in the colors that match the abdomen and head.
Males are half the size of the female and are often found at the edge of the female’s web just before mating.
Females will bite if they are guarding eggs, which can be painful, but not dangerous.
18. Arabesque Orbweaver
Scientific name: Neoscona arabesca.
Common name: arabesque orbweaver.
This is a very common orbweaver found in North America, which is brightly colored with swirl markings on the abdomen.
They are mostly observed in fields, gardens, forests, and human structures.
They are the most common orb weavers encountered with females growing up to 0.28 inches (7mm) and males growing to 0.24 inches (6mm) in length.
These spiders are not aggressive and will only bite if they feel threatened. The bite is not medically significant and the pain is similar to that of a bee sting.
19. Southern House Spider
Scientific name: Kukulcania hibernalis (formerly Filistata hibernalis).
Common name: Southern house spider.
The southern house spider is a large spider known for its females being much larger than the males.
They are common in the southern United States.
Males are often confused with the brown recluse, due to their similar body shape and coloration. Males are larger than the brown recluse without the violin shape.
Females are dark brown or black.
They grow to around 2 inches (5.1cm) with their legs extended.
Females have a larger body, while males have longer legs.
Their abdomens are covered in light gray hair, which looks like fine velvet.
The females are very rarely seen, where males will wander to find females and prey.
They will try and bite if they feel threatened, but their mouths are too small to penetrate human skin easily.
20. White-banded Fishing Spider
Scientific name: Dolomedes albineus.
Common name: white-banded fishing spider.
The white-banded fishing spider is a species of the nursery web spider found in the United States.
They tend to hunt at ponds and streams with hairs that are able to repel the water.
They can walk on water by trapping an air bubble on the belly, which allows it to swim and dive, enabling it to hunt tadpoles and other inverts.
Females can grow up to 0.9 inches (2.3cm), with males growing to around 0.7 inches (1.8cm) in length.
Their color can vary from brown to moss green with dark markings. They usually have white bands below the eyes and around the jaw.
They are not an aggressive species, but they will bite if provoked. Due to their size, their bite can be painful, causing localized pain and swelling.
21. Wolf Spider
Scientific name: Tigrosa annexa.
Common name: Wolf spider.
Wolf spiders are native to eastern North America and can be found from Florida to Ohio and Texas.
They grow to around 1.8cm excluding the legs and are considered the smallest of the wolf spiders.
Females are pale yellow with a dark V shape in the center of their belly, males are all pale. They have two yellow patches on the carapace.
The wolf spider prefers a sandy habitat that is dry.
Further Reading:
22. Long-bodied Cellar Spider
Scientific name: Pholcus phalangioides.
Common name: daddy long-legs spider, long-bodied cellar spider, skull spider.
The long-bodied cellar spider has females that are larger than the males. Males grow to around 6mm, while females grow to around 8mm.
They have eight long and thin legs, covered in grey bristles. Their legs are six times the length of the body, which means females’ legs can grow to 5cm.
Their body is divided into two portions, the cephalothorax and the opisthosoma, which is the back part of the body.
They are gray to brown in color with a dark spot on their back, they also have some blurred patches on their dorsal side.
This is an eight-eyed spider with a hard exoskeleton, which is shed as they grow.
23. Common Hentz Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Hentzia palmarum.
Common name: common hentz jumper.
This small jumping spider pounces on its prey rather than creating a web. It can jump tremendous distances.
It is also exceptionally fast, which helps it escape any predators.
Their first set of legs are dark red, the other legs are yellow. They also have red pincers, just in front of their face, which is often thought to be the fifth pair of legs.
Orange bands of hair can be seen on the face, their heads are red to brown with dark bands on the belly.
You can observe these spiders among leaf litter and sometimes in the home. They are not harmful to humans.
24. Southern Black Widow
Scientific name: Latrodectus mactans.
Common name: southern black widow, simply black widow, shoe-button spider.
The female southern black widow can grow to 0.51 inches (1.3cm), while males grow to 0.24 inches (6mm).
The legs are longer than the length of the body with females being shiny black with red markings that resemble an hourglass on their belly.
Juveniles are completely different from adults with a black to gray belly with white stripes with yellow or orange spots.
Males are purple, sometimes closer to the color of juveniles.
The southern black widow has a reputation for being venomous, but it is only a mature female that can cause problems in humans.
They inject a venom known as alpha-latrotoxin, which bungs to receptions at parasympathetic and sympathetic nerves.
Fatalities in humans due to a southern black widow bite are exceptionally rare, even though there are an average of two thousand bites each year.
25. Pantropical Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Plexippus paykulli.
Common name: pantropical jumping spider.
This is a robust jumping spider where females grow to 0.47 inches (1.2cm) and males grow to around 0.43 inches (1.1cm) in body length.
You can tell males and females apart. Males have a black abdomen and carapace with the abdomen bearing a broad stripe and a further broad stripe with white spots near the back end of the belly.
The female is grey to brown in color and tends to be darker around the eyes with a tan stripe on their belly, which breaks into two chevrons.
Juveniles all look like a female.
26. Florida Garden Spider
Scientific name: Argiope florida.
Common name: Florida argiope, Florida garden spider.
Florida garden spiders are an orb-weaver species found in the United States.
In fact, this spider is restricted to scrub habitats in the southeastern United States.
These spiders are black and light brown with distinctive banding on their legs.
27. Sylvan Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Colonus sylvanus.
Common name: Sylvan Jumping Spider.
The Sylvan jumping spider lives in the eastern United States with very little known about them.
These spiders have been found in forested areas in Florida, where they reproduce in the late spring.
They are medium-sized jumping spiders that grow to 7cm and are able to jump large distances to pounce on prey and escape predators.
They are harmless to humans.
28. White-jawed Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Hentzia mitrata.
Common name: white-jawed jumping spider.
The white jawed jumping spider female is slightly larger than the male.
They are light brown with copper hairs and white markings on their carapace and on the edge of the legs and body.
They are exceptionally small, growing to around 3mm, and are only visible when they move.
Males have a crown of red hairs on their heads.
They are completely harmless and may find their way into your home searching for prey.
29. Bold Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Phidippus audax.
Common name: daring jumping spider, bold jumping spider.
The bold jumping spider can vary in color and size with males growing anywhere from 4mm to 1.5cm in length, females range from 4mm to 1.8cm in length.
They are black with spots and stripes on their legs and bellies, the spots are often orange in juveniles and slowly change to white as they get older.
The bold jumping spiders in Florida have been noted with red, yellow, and orange spots.
Their mouths are metallic blue or green.
30. Black-tailed Red Sheetweaver
Scientific name: Florinda coccinea.
Common name: blacktailed red sheetweaver, red grass spider.
The black-tailed red sheetweaver is also known as the red grass spider and is a dwarf spider, which was first described in 1896.
These spiders are bright red with adults growing to around 0.16 inches (4mm) in length, females are slightly larger than the males.
They have two rows of eyes.
Their webs are horizontal sheets of silk with stopping threads at the top. As insects fly into the stop threads, they fall into the sheet below where the black-tailed red sheet weaver spider is waiting for them.
31. Garden Ghost Spider
Scientific name: Hibana gracilis.
Common name: garden ghost spider.
Garden ghost spiders grow to around half an inch in length.
They have eight small eyes, an elongated belly, and tend to be beige, brown, green, or yellow in color with dark markings.
These spiders actively hunt for their prey at night and hide during the day in their silken webs.
Garden ghost spiders are seen throughout the year in Florida.
32. Arrow-shaped Orbweaver
Scientific name: Micrathena sagittata.
Common name: arrow-shaped micrathena.
The arrow-shaped orbweaver is a very pretty spider with an arrow-shaped belly which is yellow with black markings and some red and black patterns.
Females grow up to 0.35 inches (9mm) and males are smaller, growing to around 0.20 inches (5mm).
33. Selenops submaculosus
This spider belongs to the Selenopidae family and is found in Florida, in other areas of the United States, Cuba, the Cayman Islands, and the Bahamas.
There is not much known about this secretive spider, except that it is not harmful to humans.
34. Spotted Orbweaver
Scientific name: Neoscona crucifera.
Common name: Hentz orbweaver, spotted orbweaver, barn spider.
The spotted orbweaver can spin an orb-shaped web that can be up to two feet in diameter.
They vary in color, some are orange to red, some yellow to brown and some are tan in color. Their belly markings can also vary from one adult to the next.
They prefer fields, gardens, woodlands, backyards, and parks, where they are most active from May to August.
They are hairy spiders that are nocturnal, but it’s not that uncommon to see one during the day.
35. Arrowhead Orbweaver
Scientific name: Verrucosa arenata.
Common name: triangle orb weaver, arrowhead spider, arrowhead orbweaver.
The arrowhead orbweaver are large spiders with the female growing to 1.4cm and larger than the male, which grows to around 6mm.
They have small heads when compared to their triangular belly, which is covered in yellow or white. Males lack the triangle on the belly.
Males are not seen often, except during mating season.
36. Tan Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Platycryptus undatus.
Common name: tan jumping spider.
The tan jumping spider has a compressed body, which allows them to hide under the bark of stress.
The female can grow up to 1.3cm in body length, males are smaller growing to around 9.5mm.
They prefer vertical surfaces, such as walls and fences.
They have excellent vision and are curious and will come within close proximity of humans.
They are happy to climb on your hand and are not inclined to bite, but if accidentally squeezed, they will try and deliver a bite.
37. Tropical Tent-web Spider
Scientific name: Cyrtophora citricola.
Common name: tropical tent-web spider.
The tropical tent web spider varies in color with different colorations on their belly.
The females can grow up to 0.39 inches (1cm) and are larger than the male, which is usually around 0.12 inches (3mm) in length.
In Florida, the male tropical tent web spider is black.
Females, on the other hand, can change their belly color to match their surroundings, they are excellent at camouflaging their webs.
38. Leaf-Curling Sac Spiders
Scientific name: Genus Clubiona.
Common name: Leaf-Curling Sac Spiders.
The leaf-curling sac spider is found in every state in the United States and throughout the world.
They have light brown legs with a darker body. Their head and legs sometimes appear transparent, depending on the lighting.
Their bite is not dangerous to humans or large pets, but they give a painful bite, which can cause irritation, minor discomfort, and swelling at the bite location for up to forty-eight hours.
39. Metazygia zilloides
This is an orb-weaver spider from the Araneidae family and found in numerous states in the US, along with the Caribbean Islands.
Females are larger than the male growing to a body length of 6mm, with males growing to 4mm in body length.
40. Common House Spider
Scientific name: Parasteatoda tepidariorum.
Common name: common house spider, American house spider.
The common house spider varies in color from black to tan with patterns of shading on the body.
Females grow to 0.24 inches (6mm) and males grow to 0.19 inches (4.7mm) in body length.
When their legs are spread, they can be 2.5cm (1 inch) or even more across.
Their body shape is similar to that of a widow spider.
Their size and color allow them to blend into their surroundings.
They are not dangerous to humans, their bites cause discomfort, redness, and swelling which can be managed at home and lasts up to forty-eight hours.
41. Walckenaer’s Trashline Orbweaver
Scientific name: Cyclosa walckenaeri.
Common name: Walckenaer’s Trashline Orbweaver.
This is an orb-weaver spider species from the family Araneidae and is found throughout the United States.
They were first described in 1866 and are distributed throughout the world.
They are small spiders that spin their webs in a circle.
42. Bifurcate Trashline Orbweaver
Scientific name: Allocyclosa bifurca.
Common name: Bifurcate Trashline Orbweaver.
The Bifurcate trashline orbweaver was first described in 1887 and was later moved to its own genus and is the only Cyclosa species found north of Mexico to have a forked tail.
The abdomen looks forked with two humps that look like an “M.”
The male and female are both a transparent green, though females have red on their belly and are thirty percent larger than the males, growing up to 9mm, while males grow to around 3mm.
It is very uncommon to see males.
They can spin orb webs up to eight inches in diameter.
43. Rabid Wolf Spider
Scientific name: Rabidosa rabida.
Common name: rabid wolf spider.
The rabid wolf spider can be identified for its two dark stripes and a single stripe on the abdomen.
Their base color is yellow with the female being larger than the male.
Females grow to around an inch in length, with males not even half of an inch.
They have eight eyes.
They are not considered harmful to humans and only bite if provoked.
44. Tuft-legged Orbweaver
Scientific name: Mangora placida.
Common name: Tuft-legged Orbweaver.
The tuft-legged orbweaver spins a web that is completely unique when compared to other orb weavers.
Their lace construction is much tighter with fewer gaps, which allows insects of all sizes to get trapped.
The webs are created vertically.
The spider has spiky hairs on their legs, which enables them to make their way around their web, without causing damage to the web itself.
They are brown in color, blending in with their surroundings.
They are often observed in forests and shrub areas. They often move into backyard gardens where they prey on pollinating insects.
45. Canopy Jumping Spider
Scientific name: Phidippus otiosus.
Common name: Canopy Jumping Spider.
The canopy jumping spider is a tree-dwelling spider found in the southeastern United States.
Females grow to around 0.62 inches (1.6cm) in length with males being smaller in size.
Their colors range from brown, gray, white, and orange with luminous green or purple fangs.
They use their considerable jump to capture prey and escape predators.
46. Bowl-and-doily Spider
Scientific name: Frontinella pyramitela.
Common name: bowl and doily spider.
The bowl and doily spider is a sheet weaver spider that grows to around 0.16 inches (4mm) in body length.
Their webs are intricate domes suspended over a horizontal doily, which is where their name comes from.
The spider will hang upside down from the dome or bowl, where it feeds on small insects.
It’s not uncommon for males and females to cohabitate.
47. Giant Lichen Orbweaver
Scientific name: Araneus bicentenarius.
Common name: giant lichen orbweaver.
This orb weaver spider belongs to the Araneidae family where they spin large webs, which can be up to eight feet in diameter.
They wait in the center of their web, upside down, for prey.
They spend the majority of their time on the edge of their web and are not harmful to humans.
48. White-banded Crab Spider
Scientific name: Misumenoides formosipes.
Common name: white banded crab spider.
The white-banded crab spider has a white line that runs down through their eyes.
They are sit-and-wait spiders that prefer pollinating insects.
The female is larger than the male with pattern markings and a body-color that is able to change from white to yellow, based on her surroundings. Males have a gold abdomen and darker legs.
49. American Green Crab Spider
Scientific name: Misumessus oblongus.
Common name: American Green Crab Spider.
The American green crab spider has the reputation for walking forwards, sideways, and backwards with long front legs to help grab prey.
They are very bright neon green spiders with a slender abdomen and red bands on the side of the abdomen, which may not be present in all species.
They are very active spiders and are often seen searching for insects on flowers and on plants.
50. Starbellied Orbweaver
Scientific name: Acanthepeira stellata.
Common name: starbellied orbweaver, starbellied spider.
The starbellied orbweaver belongs to the Araneidae family.
They have a spiky abdomen and are nocturnal, coming out at night.
Their vertical webs are designed to catch flying insects.
They are not commonly seen during the day, which is why there is very little information on them to date.
51. Heptagonal Orbweaver
Scientific name: Gea heptagon.
Common name: Heptagonal Orbweaver.
This is a small yellow and brown spider that is often found hanging with its head down and legs held in an X pattern with a small wheel-shaped web.
Females have a large head and are gray to tan in color with a brown abdomen with white and gold marketings and a dark red to black triangular marking near the back.
If you look at them from above, the body looks as though it has seven sides.
They are yellow to brown legs are banded with darker brown.
Males tend to be slender and lighter in color than the female.
They grow to around a quarter of an inch in length and both males and females are around the same size.
52. Basilica Orbweaver
Scientific name: Mecynogea lemniscata.
Common name: basilica orbweaver.
The basilica orbweaver has a long abdomen in yellow, orange, and green, making it very easy to identify.
The sides of the abdomen are green with white dots, while the back has white and orange lines.
The neck has a cat’s eye with a black line that runs down the middle.
Their legs are green with brown feet and have spiky hairs.
They create dome-shaped webs, similar to that you see on top of a cathedral, hence the name. The dome has dangling sticky traps inside.
Adults are more active in late spring to early summer.
53. Goldenrod Crab Spider
Scientific name: Misumena vatia.
Common name: goldenrod crab spider, flower (crab) spider.
The goldenrod crab spider is a flat and wide bodies spider that is crab-like in looks with the ability to walk forwards, backwards, and sideways.
They have eight legs with the first two pairs being long and held open, using them to capture prey.
They are completely harmless to humans and their bite isn’t enough to penetrate human skin.
They are white to yellow in color, depending on which flower they are hunting on.
Young females tend to hunt on a range of flowers, but the color-changing does not happen quickly and it can take a female up to twenty-five days to change color.
They are usually found in areas with bright yellow flowers that attract plenty of insects.
These spiders tend to be yellow with some markings of brown or red on the abdomen.
Males have two sets of white and red bands.
54. South American Toothed Hacklemesh Weaver
Scientific name: Metaltella simoni.
Common name: South American toothed hacklemesh weaver.
The South American toothed hacklemesh weaver is a brown spider with females grown to 9mm and males to 8.5mm in length.
Their abdomens tend to be grey to grey-black with pale chevrons towards the back.
Males have a yellow to orange area at the back of the carapace.
55. Dark Fishing Spider
Scientific name: Dolomedes tenebrosus.
Common name: dark fishing spider.
The dark fishing spider is a large spider in dark brown with chevrons and lighter stripes around the legs.
They have banded brown and black legs and are found in trees in wooded areas.
Females grow to around 2.6cm and males to 1.3cm in body length.
Their legs can be up to 9cm across.
56. Straight-banded Nursery Web Spider
Scientific name: Pisaurina brevipes.
Common name: Straight-banded Nursery Web Spider.
Nursery spiders belong to the aranoemorph spiders, which were first described back in 1890.
They look similar to wolf spiders, except the females carry their egg sacs with their jaws.
Once the eggs are ready to hatch, she builds a nursery tent that she guards.
They do not use webs to catch prey and are active hunters.
They are able to walk on and dive beneath water surfaces and can jump distances of up to six inches.
Adults can reach 1.5cm including the legs with males having longer legs than the female.
57. Northern Yellow Sac Spider
Scientific name: Cheiracanthium mildei.
Common name: northern yellow sac spider.
The northern yellow sac spider is tan to pale green with dark brown, growing to a size of around 0.4 inches (1cm) in body size.
They have a double claw at the end of each leg with the front legs being double the size of the others.
They are agile hunters with excellent vision.
While they are able to bite if threatened, they are considered harmless to humans with mild symptoms localized to the bite area.
58. Lined Orbweaver
Scientific name: Mangora gibberosa.
Common name: Lined Orbweaver.
The lined orbweaver can range from light-brown, green to white in color with long hairs that are almost translucent. They also have black lines under the front pair of legs.
They have round abdomens with yellow, green, or white markings on the sides and two dark brown lines on the back with a central black line on the carapace.
They can grow to 0.25 inches (6mm) in body length with females being around thirty percent larger than the male.
They are not harmful to humans and are non-aggressive.
59. Wall Spider
Scientific name: Oecobius navus.
Common name: Wall Spider.
The wall spider is a small spider that grows to around 3mm and is light grey with darker legs.
They create flat webs usually under rocks, ceilings, and in the corner of walls.
They are non-aggressive and hesitant to bite.
60. American Nursery Web Spider
Scientific name: Pisaurina mira.
Common name: American Nursery Web Spider.
The American nursery web spider has a hard layer that provides protection against predators with a long abdomen.
They have eight eyes which are arranged in two rows.
Females are larger than males, but males have longer legs.
Their patterns can range from dark median bands on the abdomen to no banding, but they all have two rows of lateral spots.
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