Family Agelenidae - These spiders sit at the end of their funnel-shaped web as they wait for insects. Webs are often seen in late summer and early fall close to the ground and covered with dew. The female dies in fall after depositing her eggs in an egg sac.
grass spider Agelenopsis naevia
Family Amaurobiidae - The night spiders live in holes in trees, houses or other man-made objects and are active at night. Their web usually is built to open into the hole. The female spins a closed chamber for her eggs and encloses herself in it. After the spiderlings have hatched, they eat her!
black lace-weaver spider Amaurobius ferox
Family Araneidae - The spiders in this group build orb webs. The familiar yellow garden spider is a member of this family. This large spider prefers to build its web in prairie grasses and sometimes gardens. The female has black front legs while the other legs are black with a brown section near the body. Males have black legs.
orbweaver spider Acanthepeira cherokee
orbweaver spider Araneus guttulatus
orbweaver spider Araneus juniperi
yellow garden spider Argiope aurantia
banded garden spider Argiope trifasciata
orbweaver spider Eustala cepina
furrow spider Larinioides cornutus
spined micrathena Micrathena gracilis
arrowhead spider Verrucosa arenata
Family Corinnidae - Known as sac or swift spiders, these roving predators often build their sac web on trees, other plants or in leaf litter. Their body is about three times as long as it is wide. Some of these spiders are mimics of ants and velvet ants.
ant-mimic spider Castianeira amoena
Family Gnaphosidae - The ground spiders are small, usually less than one-half inch in length. They are active at night and hide during the day in such places as under rocks, under logs and in leaf litter. There are more than 2,000 species recognized in this family. These predators run down their prey instead of catching it in a web.
ground spider Drassyllus lepidus
Family Linyphiidae - Sheet weavers are very small spiders that build a flat or dome-shaped web. They hang under the web waiting for prey to walk across it, then bite through the web to catch the prey. Most of these species are active at night. There are more than 4,000 types of sheet weaver spiders in the world.
black-tailed red sheetweaver Florinda coccinea
filmy dome spider Neriene raidiata
Family Lycosidae - Wolf spiders are very common and have four small eyes below four large eyes. They hunt on the ground, in leaf litter, in trees and on the water. Some dig tunnels or burrows.
boulder spider Pardosa saxatilis
Family Mimetidae - Pirate spiders feed mainly on other spiders. These small animals visit the web of other spiders and pluck the strands to imitate a trapped insect or a spider ready to mate. When the owner of the web comes to investigate, it is caught and eaten instead!
pirate spider Mimetus notius
Family Oxyopidae - Lynx spiders are hunters instead of web-builders. They often hide in flowers to catch pollinating insects. They have large, spiny bristles on their legs.
striped lynx spider Oxyopes salticus
Family Pisauridae - Waiting patiently or actively hunting are both methods used by nuseryweb spiders to capture prey. They are large arachnids, and some hunt on water. They may eat tadpoles and small fishes as well as insects. The female carries the egg sac with her and constructs a nurseryweb when the spiderlings are due to hatch. The spiderlings stay in the nuseryweb, guarded by their mother, for about one week and then disperse.
sixspotted fishing spider Dolomedes triton
scallop-banded spider Pisaurina mira
Family Salticidae - Jumping spiders have excellent vision and pounce on their insect prey. The males dance as part of their mating behavior.
jumping spider Habronattus borealis
jumping spider Habronattus decorus
crowned hentzia jumping spider Hentzia mitrata
jumping spider Paraphidippus aurantius
jumping spider Phidippus mystaceus
jumping spider Phidippus putnami
jumping spider Sassacus papenhoei
jumping spider Marpissa formosa
Family Sicariidae - These six-eyed spiders use a sheet web to capture insects. Often living in houses, the brown recluse has a venomous bite. Bites generally occur when people put on clothing or use a towel in which a recluse is resting.
brown recluse Loxosceles reclusa
Family Tetragnathidae - These spiders have large fangs that are used in mating. They build orb webs over water. Some are commonly found along creeks and ponds, where they eat many mosquitoes and midges.
longjawed orbweaver Tetragnatha guatemalensis
Family Thomisidae - These spiders resemble crabs in the way their legs are positioned. Instead of using a web, they wait in flowers then capture prey directly.
whitebanded crab spider Misumenoides formosipes
crab spider Misumessus oblongus