Tigrosa georgicola

[Tigrosa]

Do these have a common name? I've heard Tigrosa called tiger wolves. I tend to call them "forest wolf spiders" because of where I usually find them, and their base coloration is much more forest-y than the other large wolves.

Anyway, this is my female Tigrosa georgicola and her little home. I have had some nasty little wolf spiders in the past, but this one is so shy that photographing her is a challenge. I don't believe I've ever watched her eat. She's quite the little architect... lots of sheet web along the bottom of the tank. She's very creative with spinning the sphagnum and soil into her web as well

 

[ReignofInvertebrates]

I've heard them being called giant swamp wolf spiders, but common names like that make me cringe. So easy to mix things up I almost always use their Latin names haha.

 

[Tigrosa]

Swamp? Heh, I've never found one near a swamp. I've found tons of little tiny wolves right up against swamps, but I always found these guys under logs well away from water.

Just goes to show the trouble with common names!

 

[Biollantefan54]

I have only ever found these roaming in yards, sometimes in burrows. They don't seem picky with a habitat

 

[Ratmosphere]

Beautiful spider!

 

[kevinlowl]

Nice specimen you have there. I love the overall appearance of these spiders. Those elegant long legs are much better than big fat hairy tarantulas haha.

How big is she? I've only ever found smaller wolf spiders. I have one now that's about 1cm in body length.

 

[Tigrosa]

She's pretty big, larger than a quarter for sure. I cant really get a picture with any scale because if I put anything anywhere near her, she bolts for cover.

Can we see some pictures of your wolf?

 

[Biollantefan54]

This is her

 

[Smokehound714]

Tigrosa is a wonderful genus. they're MUCH more laid-back than Hogna, which are lightning fast in comparison.

They're kinda like enormous Alopecosa kochi

 

[kevinlowl]

She's pretty big, larger than a quarter for sure. I cant really get a picture with any scale because if I put anything anywhere near her, she bolts for cover.

Can we see some pictures of your wolf?

Whoa, wished such large spiders lived around here. Technically there are large spiders up in the highlands (frickin scary giant orb weavers) and tarantulas in the forest but garden varieties like wolf spiders never come close.

Here's mine. The thorax + abdomen is a whopping one centimeter in length, lol. It's small but I like it though. The way it catches prey is lightning quick!

Grass spider

• kevinlowl
• Feb 19, 2016

Grass spider

• kevinlowl
• Feb 19, 2016

 

[kevinlowl]

whoops, double posted.

 

[Tigrosa]

That's a cool spider you've got there, but it's not a wolf. That's a grass spider, also known as a funnel weaver.

Depending on your location, it's probably either Agelenopsis or Agelena.

I'm sure there are places near you where you can find wolf spiders. Just gotta know where to look!

 

[kevinlowl]

lol my bad they look like tiny wolf spiders, to my amateur eyes at least

Thanks for the correction, it's definitely an Agelena then.

 

[SarahRua]

My daughter and I recently caught a spider that we think is tigrosa georgicola. We live in the woods in Bastrop,TX We've just purchased a little terrarium and lined it with dirt from around where we found her, and put in a damp sponge, a large stick, and a little shelter (it's a hermit crab tank.) What advice can you give a pair of complete novices? I'm hopeful that it's a gravid female, because her abdomen is so large. I tried giving her a junebug, but she didn't eat it. I just put in a superworm from the pet store (they were out of crickets.) Still waiting to see if she'll eat it. It's been less than 24 hours, so maybe she isn't hungry yet. Like your spider, she's very shy.

 

[aaarg]

take out the sponge, replace with a small water dish (wide bottle caps work a-okay!)

 

[SarahRua]

My daughter already sacrificed one of her precious seashells to serve as a water dish, so the sponge is gone now. She's been exploring the cage, but I don't think she's eaten.

 

[Tortuga]

“Big freakin wolf spider” is the common name I usually here. But they really dont say freakin...

*hmm just had the thought this post might be bending the rules a bit. Mods feel free to delete if I am.