Lycosidae
Guides
Abaycosa
Abaycosa is a small South American genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae and subfamily Allocosinae. The World Spider Catalog currently lists two accepted species, with the genus recorded from parts of South America between Brazil and Argentina. Its formal diagnosis relies on small structures of the male and female reproductive anatomy, so species-level identification generally requires examination of preserved specimens. The genus was established in 2022 to resolve the placement of two species that had previously been assigned to other genera.
Acantholycosa
Acantholycosa is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, established by Dahl in 1908. It contains 38 accepted species in the consulted catalog summary. Members are documented across Asia and Europe, with one species, Acantholycosa solituda, recorded from North America; the genus is recognized by a combination of leg spines and other morphological details.
Agalenocosa
Agalenocosa is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, described by Mello-Leitão in 1944. The World Spider Catalog lists 18 accepted species; one additional name, Agalenocosa fimbriata, is listed as nomen dubium, meaning its identity is uncertain. Published genus-level accounts document a broad distribution, but do not establish one habitat or appearance shared by every species. As lycosids, its members belong to a family of mostly ground-active hunters rather than typical aerial-web builders.
Aglaoctenus
Aglaoctenus is a South American genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae. Five species are listed in the genus account, and the group is described as building funnel-shaped webs. Species-level evidence shows that at least A. castaneus uses webs placed on vegetation and in leaf litter in humid forest settings. Distinguishing species can require examination of structures such as the male palp or female epigyne, so a photograph alone may not settle an identification.
Allocosa funerea
Allocosa funerea is a small wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, originally described by Hentz in 1844 under the name Lycosa funerea. The species exhibits notable sexual dimorphism in size, with females being slightly larger than males. It is primarily distributed across the eastern and central United States.
Allocosa sublata
Allocosa sublata is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, first described by Montgomery in 1902. It is a ground-dwelling spider known from the United States. Very few observations exist in public databases, with only five records on iNaturalist as of the latest data. The genus Allocosa contains multiple North American species, many of which occupy similar terrestrial habitats.
Allotrochosina
Allotrochosina is a genus of wolf spiders (Lycosidae), the spider family recorded in the taxonomic sources for this name. The World Spider Catalog currently lists six accepted species: A. karri, A. schauinslandi, A. walesiana, A. huangi, A. limu, and A. serpentina. Records in the catalog place the genus across more than one geographic region, but the sources consulted here do not provide a single complete range for the genus. Species-level identification is therefore more useful than relying on the genus name alone.
Alopecosa
Fox Spiders
Alopecosa is a genus of wolf spiders (Lycosidae) comprising approximately 160 species. These ground-dwelling spiders are predominantly Eurasian in distribution, with some species extending into North Africa and North America. Most species reach up to 2 cm in body length. Females construct burrows for egg deposition and guard their egg sacs until hatching. The genus has been subject to taxonomic revision, with species historically grouped into sibling species complexes based on morphology, though courtship behavior and molecular techniques have proven more reliable for species delimitation.
Alopecosa aculeata
Spinyrib Wolf Spider
Alopecosa aculeata is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, found across a broad geographic range spanning North America, Europe, and Asia. Taxonomic study has revealed that specimens historically identified as this species actually represent two distinct species, with A. aculeata and A. taeniata now recognized as separate based on morphological, behavioral, and ecological differences. The species exhibits distinct courtship behavior and habitat preferences that differ from its close relatives.
Alopecosa exasperans
Alopecosa exasperans is a wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It forms part of the albostriata species group alongside A. albostriata and A. mutabilis, a group distributed across Siberia and the northern Nearctic. The species has been recorded in Canada and Greenland. Taxonomic research suggests this species group may eventually be transferred to the genus Mustelicosa based on male palp morphology.
Alopecosa hirtipes
Alopecosa hirtipes is an Arctic wolf spider (family Lycosidae) distributed across northern North America and Eurasia. The species has been studied for its reproductive biology, with research documenting correlations between female body size, mass, and clutch characteristics. As a ground-dwelling lycosid, it inhabits tundra and cold-adapted habitats where it exhibits typical wolf spider behaviors including maternal care of egg sacs.
Alopecosa pictilis
Painted Wolf Spider
Alopecosa pictilis is a wolf spider species in the family Lycosidae, first described by Emerton in 1885. It is one of approximately 150 species in the genus Alopecosa, a group of ground-dwelling hunting spiders distributed across the Northern Hemisphere. The species exhibits the typical wolf spider characteristics of active hunting behavior and maternal care of egg sacs. Records indicate it has been observed in at least 29 documented occurrences.
Amblyothele
Amblyothele is a genus of African wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, first described by Eugène Simon in 1910. Eight described species are listed for the genus, with records spanning parts of southern, central, and western Africa. These are small spiders, and their pale-to-brown bodies, long legs, and distinctive eye, spinneret, and leg-spine characters are useful for technical identification. They are free-running ground dwellers rather than web-dependent hunters.
Anomalosa
Anomalosa is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae. The cited taxonomic account recognizes two Australian species, with records from Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. Anomalosa kochi is the type species; the genus was described by Carl Friedrich Roewer in 1960. Published descriptions show that at least one species is associated with open, seasonally wet habitats near inland water in southeastern Australia.
Anoteropsis
Anoteropsis is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, established by L. Koch in 1878. The World Spider Catalog lists 22 accepted species, with most documented from New Zealand and nearby islands; individual species are also recorded from New Guinea and Polynesia. The type species is A. flavescens, and the genus has a history of reclassification within spider taxonomy.
Antembolus
Antembolus is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, described in 2023 from Saint Helena in the South Atlantic. Two species are recorded: Antembolus elysae and A. ringens. The genus is known only from male specimens in the published records, with reported body lengths of about 8 mm for A. elysae and about 4 mm for A. ringens. Its restricted island distribution and recent recognition make it a notable part of Saint Helena's spider fauna.
Arctosa alpigena
Hilltop Wolf Spider
Arctosa alpigena is a wolf spider in the family Lycosidae with a holarctic distribution spanning North America, Greenland, and Eurasia. It is one of numerous Arctosa species adapted to open, often sandy or gravelly habitats. Like other wolf spiders, it is an active ground-dwelling hunter rather than a web-builder. The species has been subject to reproductive biology studies examining spatial and temporal patterns of mating and offspring production.
Arctosa raptor
Raptor Wolf Spider
Arctosa raptor is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It has been documented across a broad geographic range spanning northern Eurasia and North America, with records from Russia (including Kamchatka), Nepal, the United States, and Canada. The species was first described by Polish arachnologist Władysław Kulczyński in 1885. Like other wolf spiders, it is an active hunter that does not construct webs to capture prey.
Arctosa virgo
Arctosa virgo is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, described by Chamberlin in 1925. It is known from the United States, with records from oak-hickory forests in southern Missouri. As a member of the genus Arctosa, it belongs to a group of cursorial wolf spiders adapted to ground-dwelling predation. Very little specific information has been published about this species beyond its original description and a few collection records.
Arctosippa
Arctosippa is a genus of wolf spiders (family Lycosidae) established by Roewer in 1960. The available account treats it as monotypic, with the species Arctosippa gracilis. That species has been recorded in Peru. The genus is recognized taxonomically within the spider order Araneae, but detailed natural-history information is limited.
Artoria
Australian Forest Runners
Artoria is an accepted genus of wolf spiders (family Lycosidae), established by Thorell in 1877. It is an Australasian group: the genus-level revision covers species from Australia, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea, while later catalog records include many additional accepted species. Artoria is notable for a male-spider structure near the base of the pedipalp embolus, a character used in its taxonomic diagnosis.
Artoriellula
Artoriellula is a small genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae. Two accepted species are documented: A. bicolor from South Africa and A. celebensis from Sulawesi, Indonesia. They are free-running ground dwellers, rather than spiders described from a web-based lifestyle. The genus is recognized by a combination of small body size, a patterned carapace and abdomen, and distinctive eye and mouthpart characters.
Artoriopsis
Artoriopsis is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, described from Australia in 2007. It is endemic to Australia and is most diverse in the southern part of the continent, although one species reaches tropical northern Australia; the World Spider Catalog lists at least 14 accepted species. The spiders are small, about 3–11 mm in body length, and records place them in open, vegetated or sandy areas with moderate humidity. Identifying a particular species generally requires close examination against a taxonomic treatment.
Aulonia
Aulonia is a genus of wolf spiders (family Lycosidae) native from Europe eastward to Central Asia. The World Spider Catalog lists two species: Aulonia albimana, the type species, and Aulonia kratochvili. Their documented ranges span Europe, Turkey, the Caucasus, and parts of the eastern Mediterranean and Central Asia, making the genus a small but geographically broad lycosid lineage.
Bogdocosa
Bogdocosa is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, described from the Lower Volga region in 2008. The World Spider Catalog currently lists four accepted species, while the GBIF backbone provides a genus-level description. Members are medium-sized spiders measuring about 4.0–8.5 mm in the cited description, with yellowish-brown to gray-brown bodies and a broad pale median band on the carapace. The genus is recorded from parts of China, Russia, Central Asia, and northern Iran.
Chicosa
Chicosa is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, established in 2025 for the species Chicosa cinnameopilosa. The genus is documented from East Asia, with the taxonomic treatment covering material from China and placing the group in a broader East Asian context. It is recognized through a combination of detailed spider morphology and mitochondrial DNA evidence rather than by a single casual field mark. Its description is notable because it moves a species formerly placed in Alopecosa into a separate genus after morphological and phylogenetic study.
Draposa
Draposa is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, described from the Indomalayan region. Its documented range includes Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, China, Malaysia, and Indonesia. The spiders are recognized by a combination of a pardosoid, thin-legged form and technical structures of the male and female reproductive organs.
Dzhungarocosa
Dzhungarocosa is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae. The genus contains three accepted species, all described from the Dzhungarian Alatau of southeastern Kazakhstan. Its members are notable for numerous spines on the underside of the first leg's tibia and for living in high-elevation stone screes.
Evippa
Evippa is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae. The genus currently contains about 38 recognized species, with documented records spread across parts of Africa and Asia, including arid regions from the Sahara and North Africa through Central and South Asia and into East Asia. Species-level identification is important because the genus includes spiders with records across a broad geographic range and the available catalog evidence is organized species by species.
Evippomma
Evippomma is an accepted genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, with six described species. Most species are recorded from Africa; the genus also includes a species described from Pakistan and one reaching Israel. These are small to medium-sized, free-running ground spiders recognized by a patterned, hairy body and several useful leg and eye characters. The genus was established in 1959 and revised in 1992.
Foveosa
Foveosa is a genus of small African wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae. Five described species are listed, with records ranging from South and West Africa to Central and East Africa. Adults are only a few millimetres long and can be recognized by a combination of eye arrangement, carapace shape, and long spines on the front legs. Detailed information on the genus’s habitat, feeding, development, and ecological relationships remains limited.
Geolycosa
Burrowing Wolf Spiders
Geolycosa is a genus of burrowing wolf spiders (family Lycosidae) established by Montgomery in 1904. These spiders are characterized by their obligate burrowing lifestyle, constructing deep cylindrical burrows in sandy or loose soils. Some species build distinctive turrets around burrow openings using sticks and debris. The genus includes approximately 70 species distributed across North America, with some species extending into the Levant. Geolycosa species are medium to large spiders with morphological adaptations for digging, including enlarged chelicerae and stout anterior legs.
Geolycosa fatifera
Geolycosa fatifera is a burrowing wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, found in the United States. As a member of the genus Geolycosa, it spends the majority of its life in a deep burrow. The species was first described by Nicholas Marcellus Hentz in 1842. Like other Geolycosa species, it exhibits traits associated with fossorial (burrowing) existence, including stout front legs adapted for digging.
Geolycosa gosoga
Geolycosa gosoga is a species of burrowing wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is endemic to the United States, with records from the southwestern and south-central regions including New Mexico and surrounding areas. As a member of the genus Geolycosa, it constructs deep, silk-lined burrows in sandy soils and is primarily nocturnal.
Geolycosa hubbelli
Geolycosa hubbelli is a species of burrowing wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States and belongs to a genus characterized by deep, silk-lined burrows. Members of this genus are typically associated with sandy or loose soil habitats where they construct vertical burrows with debris-reinforced turrets.
Geolycosa micanopy
Geolycosa micanopy is a burrowing wolf spider species in the family Lycosidae, described by Wallace in 1942. It is known from the United States. As a member of the genus Geolycosa, it constructs deep, silk-lined burrows in sandy substrates. A laboratory study has examined burrow establishment behavior in young individuals of this species in relation to microhabitat conditions and prey availability.
Geolycosa patellonigra
Geolycosa patellonigra is a burrowing wolf spider species in the family Lycosidae, described by Wallace in 1942. It is found in the United States, with records from Florida and potentially other southeastern states. As a member of the genus Geolycosa, it constructs deep silk-lined burrows in sandy soils and exhibits notable ballooning behavior—spiderling aerial dispersal via silk threads—at frequencies higher than typical for wolf spiders. The species shows geographical variation in its seasonal distribution patterns.
Geolycosa rafaelana
Rafaela Burrowing Wolf Spider
Geolycosa rafaelana is a burrowing wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, found in western desert and scrubland habitats of the United States. As a member of the genus Geolycosa, it constructs deep, silk-lined burrows in sandy soils and is primarily nocturnal. The species was described by Chamberlin in 1928 and appears to be associated with arid environments in the southwestern U.S.
Geolycosa riograndae
Geolycosa riograndae is a species of burrowing wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, first described by Wallace in 1942. It belongs to a genus characterized by deep, silk-lined burrows and fossorial habits. The species is known from the United States, with records primarily from the southwestern region including New Mexico. Like other Geolycosa species, it exhibits the elevated cephalothorax and stout digging appendages typical of burrowing wolf spiders.
Geolycosa turricola
turret spider, burrowing wolf spider
Geolycosa turricola is a burrowing wolf spider (family Lycosidae) native to the eastern United States, ranging as far west as Ohio. This species constructs deep, silk-lined burrows in sandy soils, often with a distinctive turret of silk and debris at the entrance. It exhibits an obligate burrowing lifestyle with a two-year life cycle and has been documented showing high frequencies of ballooning behavior—aerial dispersal via silk threads—despite occupying relatively stable sand dune habitats. Spiderlings display subsocial organization with prolonged mutual tolerance within broods, facilitated primarily by chemical communication.
Geolycosa xera
McCrone's burrowing wolf spider
Geolycosa xera, commonly known as McCrone's burrowing wolf spider, is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is endemic to Florida in the United States, where it inhabits scrub habitats in several central Florida counties. The species was described by McCrone in 1963 and comprises two recognized subspecies with restricted distributions.
Hippasa
Hippasa is a genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, described by Eugène Simon in 1885. The genus currently includes 27 species distributed across parts of Africa and Asia, from Egypt to South Africa and from Pakistan to Japan. Hippasa spiders are associated with low vegetation and construct funnel webs that lead into ground or plant cover. They can be recognized by a combination of an elongated basal segment on the posterior spinnerets, white abdominal spots, and a long-setose, often banded body.
Hippasosa
Hippasosa is an accepted genus of wolf spiders in the family Lycosidae, established by Roewer in 1960. The genus was reported with 11 species in 2024, including species from Africa, South Asia, China, and other parts of Asia. Published accounts describe these spiders as large and associated with river or lake banks. Recent work added H. thailandica from Thailand and H. yunnanensis from China, while also documenting the genus's continuing taxonomic revision.
Hogna
wolf spiders
Hogna is a large genus of wolf spiders (Lycosidae) comprising more than 200 described species distributed across all continents except Antarctica. The genus is taxonomically problematic, having never been properly revised even in Europe, and lacks a reliable diagnostic framework. Species are generally large, ground-dwelling hunters that construct open silk-lined burrows rather than using trapdoors. Hogna carolinensis is among the largest wolf spiders in North America, with females reaching 35 mm body length. The genus exhibits notable ecological diversity, with parallel habitat specialization documented in island radiations such as the Galápagos and Madeira.
Hogna ammophila
Hogna ammophila is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is a member of the genus Hogna, which includes large, ground-dwelling hunting spiders. The specific epithet "ammophila" (Greek for "sand-loving") suggests an association with sandy habitats, though detailed natural history information for this particular species is limited in available sources.
Hogna angusta
Hogna angusta is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, first described by Tullgren in 1901. The genus Hogna includes large, active hunting spiders commonly found in open habitats. As with other Hogna species, H. angusta likely exhibits the characteristic eye arrangement and nocturnal eye-shine typical of wolf spiders. Specific biological details for this species remain poorly documented in available literature.
Hogna antelucana
Hogna antelucana is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is a ground-dwelling, nocturnal hunter found in the United States. As a member of the genus Hogna, it is a relatively large wolf spider with well-developed eyes adapted for low-light conditions. The species was described by Montgomery in 1904.
Hogna coloradensis
Hogna coloradensis is a wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, first described by Nathan Banks in 1894. The species occurs in the southwestern United States and Mexico. Like other members of the genus Hogna, it is a ground-dwelling, cursorial hunter. Specific details regarding its ecology and behavior remain poorly documented in the scientific literature.
Hogna ericeticola
Rosemary Wolf Spider
Hogna ericeticola, known as the rosemary wolf spider, is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It was described by Howard K. Wallace in 1942. The species is endemic to Florida scrub habitats in Putnam County, Florida, United States. As a member of the genus Hogna, it is a large, active ground-dwelling spider.
Hogna frondicola
Forest Wolf Spider
Hogna frondicola is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae, commonly known as the Forest Wolf Spider. It is found throughout the United States and Canada, with confirmed records from Alberta and British Columbia. The species is one of several Hogna species known to serve as hosts for the spider wasp Anoplius aethiops, which paralyzes and provisions its burrows with these spiders.