Is this a rabid wolf spider (Rabidosa rabida)?

[drnate]

Hi all,

I am in Grovetown, Georgia USA.

I found this hiding in the upper left hand corner of my doorway this evening when I came home from a movie.

I have also seen a number of these around my house, usually around the baseboard and one time in my clothes basket when i was doing laundry.I checked the identification guide and searched online, but just want to be sure, because last time i posted a pic i ended up having a true black widow and it's concerning to think about these things with a young curious child.




Thanks in advance for any help!!

[MyssArachnomancer]

Wolf Spiders (Lycosidae) hunt on foot, so they can wander far and wide finding food. "Rabid" is just a name, and doesn't reflect behavior. They're normally quite gentle, only biting if roughly handled. Bites usually tend to be a small welt, like a fly bite. They are not dangerously venomous.

[Mandy]

Yep, nice call on it being a "rabid wolf spider." I can't tell from the image whether it is a Rabidosa rabida or a Rabidosa punctulata, though. The only visible difference between them are some pale dashes in the center of the long black stripe on the abdomen; with pale marks is R. rabida, without pale marks is R. punctulata.

MyssArachnomancer gave some great info. And this kind of spider is of decent enough size that there's probably some crevices around the house that could use some sealing. Spiders really love to hunt insects at outdoor lights at night, and they sometimes shimmy into the small spaces under/around the perimeter of the doors. If the weatherstripping is loose or torn, that's how a lot of them inadvertently get inside.

Wolf spiders (unlike most other spiders) have decent vision, so when/if they see your kiddo coming, they will be running away and doing whatever they can to avoid contact... so it's really unlikely that a bite scenario would arise.

Hope this helps!