Everything You Didn’t Know About Wolf Spiders

The wolf spider is one of the largest and fastest spiders in the world. And they freak a lot of people out. Today we're gonna get to the bottom of how these spiders absolutely dominate their habitats, and why they are hands down the most formidable predator in your backyard.

Works cited:

Here at MyWildBackyard we investigate the secrets of the natural world- secrets that can be hidden in our very own backyards! I want to share the incredible world of insects, spiders and other wildlife with you and inspire you to explore your curiosity. Get out there, and find your adventure!

For those who read the description- we've updated the channel! I'm working on adding more features to videos to better expand our conversations about the secrets we find in the natural world! Introducing the Creature Tier System! There are four rankings:
1. Staple - These are the lowest tier creatures. They are the most common species in a given habitat, and while they're not boring, they're really only exciting when you're exploring a new habitat and you haven't seen them before. Not something to write home about.
2. Neat - These are a step up from Staple. They don't make your entire day, but they are worth taking a closer look at when found. Definitely can be exciting to have a productive day finding many Neat species.
3. Wild - These are exciting to find. Whether they have interesting defensive features that offer a nice challenge in the field, are particularly cool looking, or maybe a little bit rare, Wild species aren't necessarily the MOST memorable of encounters, but they definitely make your day when you see them. An adventure featuring many Wild species will truly be memorable.
4. Gem - These are special. Usually involving extremely interesting biology and significant rarity, Gem species are animals that you really do not see every day. These species can make your whole adventure, and will be very memorable.

Creative Commons Music Tracks Used in This Video:

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License

#wolfspider

[OneAndOnlyBingus]

Wolf Spiders look like they're about to politely ask if they can bite you

[corinnakl]

I remember a time in Texas when we saw a large spider carrying an egg sack.When we tried to move her to a safer place the egg sack dropped.She was frantically looking around until she found the egg sack again.We left her and used a piece of wood to give her shelter underneath.I believe it was a wolf spider.

[gracelaw]

I had a pet wolf spider for a while. Owning him was so rewarding and he has a big personality. He was also a picky eater. Hated silk worms and meal worms but he loved Dubai roaches.

[smetlogik]

Can we take a moment to appreciate that Spencer has taken the #1 phobia, created a YT channel, and made it a success? This should be a case study for people who say they can't make a successful channel on YT. Another good one, Spencer. Been shining (cheating) spiders of our own lately at the place we hung out with you guys. Still can't get over their eyes at night.

[drunkensquirrel]

We're in FL, and I have learned to love our Wolf Spiders. The coolest thing is that the females carry their large egg sacs until the babies hatch out then she carries all her babies around for a while. When I've caught a female's + her babies' eyeshine... WOW... they look just like beautiful jewels in the vegetation! 🕷️❤️🕷️

[KyraSanders]

I had 2 wolf spiders living in my fieldstone constructed house. They had separated the house into 2 domains. I was curious, so I brought them together to see how they'd react. They came together, did a little walking dance, tapping on each other's forward legs. After a turn or 2 of tapping, they separated and spent a moment contemplating the interaction, and examining where they each touched. Then the turned away in unison and went back to their respective territories in my house. They are incredible.

[UKSKIDS]

Many people always underestimate how intelligent these little buddies are. We have all of them in the UK. Would love one as a pet. 😂

[geronimo]

I have always loved Wolf Spiders. They are the perfect addition to any home. Wolf Spiders mind their own business and happily track down every nuisance that is otherwise running around or into places. If you ever find one who stumbled into your home seeking prey. Capture it with a cup and paper then return it outside. There are thousands of wolf spider species in the world. Finding out that they can learn, have similar vision to our own, and tend to young. Makes them all the more special. These kind of creatures are among the short list of others who are similar to us on this rock. I place these spiders right up there with Whales, Octopus, Ravens, and Wolves for their intelligence that we should appreciate for their similarity to humanity, instead of our typical destruction mindset.

Some humility from a Kansan

[PrisPrivate]

Love these guys!! And I learned a lot from this video too. Wolfies might just be my favorite spiders at the moment, though it’s difficult to decide when jumping spiders also exist… I love your deep dives like this, they always make me smarter!! It’s so cool that you’re branching out and not just sticking to a single style, especially because all the styles of videos you make are educational, entertaining, and fascinating!! Whether you’re out in the jungle hunting for deadly spiders, or back at home giving a closer look at some of the most overlooked creatures, it’s nothing but bangers!! So what I’m saying is thank you, I’m always happy to support you :)

[maggienelson]

Spencer, I have just learned more about wolf spiders in this 13 minute video than I have in the last several years! The transcripts are also cool. Thank you so much for sharing all this stuff! :D

[Brandywine]

Wolf spiders are what cured my arachnophobia. When I first moved to my place, there were so many of them. I spent the first couple of years terrified of them. The next couple of years marveling at how they made actual little footstep sounds when they got in the house. The next couple of years reading about them and watching videos of them. I finally figured out that if they wanted to hurt me, they would have done it in all the years I've lived around them. Now, I love spiders, especially wolf spiders.

[TheRoadhammer]

Garden orb weavers, jumping spiders and Wolfies are my top 3 favs

[napoleon]

I love wolf spiders so much, could watch vids about them all day easily

[TheNostalgicFuture]

Wolf spider was my first spider encounter as a kid in rural north texas. they were very large, sometimes being nearly as big as the smaller terantulas, which were also common, they just were skinnier. My mom has arachnophobia I was constantly finding and moving these guys away from the house back into the yard. very smart spiders. I remember they would mimick you if you were non violent. you move left, he moves left ect.

[Sintaxx]

Man, your videos are always fascinating.

Kudos to you and anyone else who films your close-up macro shots of spiders. Through these close-up shots, we get to see what we never would otherwise. And that is that these creatures actually look awesome, intelligent, and, dare I say it? beautiful!

Because of your channel, I had a complete change in perception regarding these animals. Now, when I find a spider inside my house, I am thinking "Damn, there's nothing for you to eat in here, let me take you outside." Then I would get it to crawl on a paper towel and deposit it in the flower bed in front of the house.

Out of ALL the annoying insects I wish instant-death upon (flies, cockroaches, fleas, earwigs, gnats, mosquitos), spiders are not in this category. I consider them "Nature's exterminators" and I actually dig them.

Your channel has been HUGE in my understanding of how incredibly cool these critters are.

[RedShirtGuy]

As much as Jumping Spiders are my personal favorites because of their aesthetics and cute-factor, I have an equal utilitarian respect for the efficient predator that is the Wolf Spider

[alexadrew]

I know I told you before, but I couldn't even look at wolf spiders until I came across your videos. A big part of that came from their beefiness and their eyes, but their speed was just so intimidating. Seeing you handle them though helped me overcome that fear of mine and I've really come to appreciate them and their fine-tuned hunting abilities. Their speed makes it so I still don't think I'm ready to hold one just yet, but the more you share about them the more comfortable I become with it. I had no idea their venom had anti-septic properties for instance; all my life I had been told by others that wolf spiders have "dirty mouths" and thus painful bites. But paraphrasing what you said, it wouldn't benefit the wolf spider not to evolve some countermeasure. And even though the visual creeps me out, the act of mama wolves carrying their babies is incredibly sweet/cute and is a fascinating display of evolution. So my respect for these incredible little organisms just continues to grow, and it makes me want to go find my own adventure. Thank you as always Spencer!

[lizrogers]

... I love wolf spiders. One of my favourite spiders.

[yoggsaron]

Even as a spider lover, I've always been anxious around wolf spiders. Your channel has made me so excited to see them on my porch now!

I love that they can do math and see in color, they're like weird little artists! ❤

[Davieboymac]

My personal all time favorite spider. Thanks for the video!