The first thing you notice about this wolf spider is that it must have lived a fairly tough life. Count the legs and you'll notice that it's missing a couple. Wolf spiders are members of the family, lycosidae. Its a large family, with something like 200 members. Some are large; most are small. The largest is the Carolina wolf spider, Hogna carolinensis. Wolf spiders do not build webs, instead digging burrows or nesting in crevices. They have excellent eyesight provided by, count 'em, eight eyes. They are also excellent hunters, who do most of their work at night. Wolf spiders are generally harmless to humans. This photo was taken in the Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary.
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