# "Natural Habitat" aka My House



## tAngents (Feb 1, 2017)

Okay, so this isn't exactly "out in the field" I don't think, but many different kinds of spiders and bugs call my house home. I live in metro Detroit, Michigan. 

This is probably the craziest one I've ever seen. If anyone has any idea what this is, let me know! I've never seen a spider like this in MI. The bricks to the right of it are standard size, just to give you an idea of its leg span. 





Next one I believe is some type of orb weaver? Very pretty. I think it fell off its web in the cold because I found it huddled in my back doorjamb. I relocated it to a bush in the backyard so it wouldn't get squished.





Also an orb weaver, I think. Bright yellowish-orange color!





Next one is some sort wolf spider I think? I'm not sure. They're everywhere around the outside of the house in the summer in their thick white funnel-like webs. Sometimes they get inside and I admit, they kind of freak me out because they dart across the floor. I'll even find them nesting comfortably in shoes that have been in the closet awhile. Ugh.





The next two are ones that I usually encounter in my home. No clue what they are but they are everywhere. They like to surprise me....










Not a spider, but this little bug was funny as heck. It was sooo tiny but it thought it was so hardcore. It was lunging at me while sitting on my knee, throwing its front legs up in the air every time I moved. LOL! Anyone know what it is? Baby praying mantis maybe?





Also not a spider, just a large-ish moth that was hanging out on the gazebo in my front yard. 





Thanks for viewing! Any info/comments about these critters is appreciated!

Reactions: Like 2


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## The Snark (Feb 1, 2017)

Doing some guessing. The first looks vaguely sparassid. The fourth, agelenopsis, fifth, sparassid again.


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## socalqueen (Feb 1, 2017)

tAngents said:


> Okay, so this isn't exactly "out in the field" I don't think, but many different kinds of spiders and bugs call my house home. I live in metro Detroit, Michigan.
> 
> This is probably the craziest one I've ever seen. If anyone has any idea what this is, let me know! I've never seen a spider like this in MI. The bricks to the right of it are standard size, just to give you an idea of its leg span.
> 
> ...


You have quite the "collection"! I grew up in an area that had its fair share of bugs and critters. Would see scorpions, snakes, beetles, roaches, and more. But my favorites were the huge moths that would stick to our screen door on warm summer nights. Some were 5-6" long, just huge, and pretty creepy looking (my mom would always freak out) but I loved them.


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## Ungoliant (Feb 2, 2017)

tAngents said:


> This is probably the craziest one I've ever seen. If anyone has any idea what this is, let me know! I've never seen a spider like this in MI. The bricks to the right of it are standard size, just to give you an idea of its leg span.


A male nursery web spider (_Pisaurina mira_) can be extremely leggy.




tAngents said:


> Next one I believe is some type of orb weaver? Very pretty. I think it fell off its web in the cold because I found it huddled in my back doorjamb. I relocated it to a bush in the backyard so it wouldn't get squished.


Female cross orbweaver (_Araneus diadematus_).




tAngents said:


> Also an orb weaver, I think. Bright yellowish-orange color!


Definitely a female _Araneus_, possibly a yellow color-form of _Araneus diadematus_.




tAngents said:


> Next one is some sort wolf spider I think? I'm not sure. They're everywhere around the outside of the house in the summer in their thick white funnel-like webs. Sometimes they get inside and I admit, they kind of freak me out because they dart across the floor. I'll even find them nesting comfortably in shoes that have been in the closet awhile. Ugh.


A grass spider (_Agelenopsis_) or something else in the funnel weaver family (Agelenidae).

Most wolf spiders (Lycosidae) hunt on foot or from burrows, and their eyes look like this.




tAngents said:


> The next two are ones that I usually encounter in my home. No clue what they are but they are everywhere. They like to surprise me....


The first one is a running crab spider (family Philodromidae). One way to identify them is that their second legs are usually noticeably longer than their first legs.

I can't see a lot of detail on the second spider, but it looks like some kind of sac spider (Clubionidae, _Cheiracanthium_, or _Hibana_).




The Snark said:


> The first looks vaguely sparassid. The fourth, agelenopsis, fifth, sparassid again.


Sparassids are not commonly found in Michigan. (BugGuide has no sparassids that far north.)

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1 | Informative 1 | Cookie 1


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## RTTB (Feb 4, 2017)

My backyard and house is pretty boring compared to yours. All I have is black widows, earwigs, and litsuof escaped crickets.


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## HybridReplicate (Feb 9, 2017)

Ungoliant said:


> A grass spider (_Agelenopsis_) or something else in the funnel weaver family (Agelenidae).


Goodness you know a lot about spiders, this is exactly what my little spider friend (RIP) was! Thanks!

Reactions: Like 1


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## Ungoliant (Feb 9, 2017)

HybridReplicate said:


> Goodness you know a lot about spiders, this is exactly what my little spider friend (RIP) was! Thanks!


You're welcome!

I spent a lot of time learning about true spiders before I got my first tarantula.


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## OveroMare (Feb 9, 2017)

The crab spider seemingly debating on whether to floss.

Reactions: Funny 1


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## All About Arthropods (Feb 12, 2017)

The arthropod in the seventh picture is an assassin bug nymph, seems to be Zelus luridus.


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## Bunyan van Asten (Mar 4, 2017)

tAngents said:


> Okay, so this isn't exactly "out in the field" I don't think, but many different kinds of spiders and bugs call my house home. I live in metro Detroit, Michigan.
> 
> This is probably the craziest one I've ever seen. If anyone has any idea what this is, let me know! I've never seen a spider like this in MI. The bricks to the right of it are standard size, just to give you an idea of its leg span.
> 
> ...


I wish i had that many spiders in my house!


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