What type of spider is this? (Atlanta, GA High-Res photos)

[10aCMike]

What type of spider is this? Since this encounter I've been on pins and needles!

Location: Atlanta, GA (Lithonia, GA or East Atlanta to be exact)
Home Location: Wooded Area with brush
Encountered: 5/3/12 at approximately 12:00pm EST
Encountered at: Finished Home Basement, came from under door/floor-board gap
Body Length: Approximately 3/4 to 1in, I would GUESS more along the 3/4in size.

Additional Notes: Didn't display aggressive behavior, but I didn't get too close (took photo from about 3 feet away zoomed at about 200mm). Spider stayed in this position for a couple minutes without moving, I assume in an attempt to escape detection. It didn't move while I snapped a few pictures, even on the last photo when I used a flash. A little after though it slowly retreated back under the door/floor board. Maybe I should have been more concerned with killing it(sorry guys, NO WAY I'm putting my hands close to a spider I know NOTHING about to try to catch it with a cup), but I really wanted to document it to find out what I'm dealing with.

[MyssArachnomancer]

This appears to be a member of the Pisaurina genus, otherwise known as Nursery Web Spiders. They can grow large, but are gentle and not dangerously venomous. They prefer to be in vegetation and brush, and likely accidentally wandered in.

[10aCMike]

This appears to be a member of the Pisaurina genus, otherwise known as Nursery Web Spiders. They can grow large, but are gentle and not dangerously venomous. They prefer to be in vegetation and brush, and likely accidentally wandered in.

Thank you for your response. I live in a wooded area with brush not far away from the door I assume the spider came in under. I'm going to re-seal the door at my first opportunity. On a percentage scale, how confident are you this is a Nursery Web Spider? This and another smaller, different type of spider have me really paranoid about accidentally encountering one in my clothing, shoes or bed. Lord if my fiance had ran into this instead of me, I would NEVER be able to get her in that area again!

[Ungoliant]

Nice pictures!

I agree with MyssArachnomancer that this is a nursery web spider (family Pisauridae). (Genus Pisaurina is a strong possibility.) The way that your spider is holding its legs is typical of this family.

What I can see of its eyes is also consistent with the family. (If it were a wolf spider, its eyes would be arranged in three rows with two larger, prominent eyes in the middle.)

There are no dangerously venomous nursery web spiders.

[10aCMike]

Thank you both; I really appreciate your help!

[Mandy]

We'll eventually have a species guide here on www.Spiders.us for this species (Pisaurina mira). I'll add a link to it here when it goes up, stay tuned.

[10aCMike]

Cool beans; thanks.

[Mandy]

We've added the guide for Pisaurina mira recently - http://www.spiders.us/species/pisaurina-mira/. We'll have to add additional photo examples as we have time, but there's some good info there for now.