Wolf Spiders in Ohio and California

Wolf spiders are brown, light brown, brownish-yellow or tan. All have at least one row of black stripes from the eyes back to the abdomen, and most have light chevrons, bands or stripes on the abdomen. Males are lighter than females.³

The eyes tell the story. Wolf spiders have four small eyes in a front row, a middle pair of larger eyes and a rear pair set wide apart. Their eyes reflect green when you light them at night.¹

Funnel weavers look like small wolf spiders. Wolf spiders tend to have rounder abdomens, while funnel weaver abdomens taper to a point.⁴ Wolf spiders also get mistaken for brown recluses.⁵ See the brown recluse guide for the eye test, and the main spider guide for other house spiders.

The female lays many eggs at once and wraps them in a large ball of webbing.³ She carries the egg sac on her spinnerets until the eggs hatch.²

The spiderlings then climb onto her back and ride there until they can hunt on their own.^2,3 Immatures look like smaller adults and are typically brown.³

That is the sight that scares people, a big spider covered in babies. A female with a sac or spiderlings is protecting her young.²

Adults hunt alone on the ground, day and night.^1,2

• Fast, large spiders running across floors or garage slabs, not sitting in a web.^1,2
• Eyes that glow green in a flashlight beam at night.¹
• A small, thick web only where the spider rests.¹
• Spiders in ornamental plantings, mulch, woodpiles and under objects.²
• Lots of small black spiders in the lawn in spring.²
• A female carrying a ball of eggs or covered in spiderlings.^2,3
• A big spider indoors in fall, which is often a wandering male.¹

Look at the ground level first. Wolf spiders hunt there, not up in the corners where web builders live.^1,2

Utah State says wolf spiders are not known to be a health hazard and are considered beneficial.² UC IPM says spider bites are rare. Spiders bite when squeezed, lain on or provoked, and most spider jaws are too small to pierce adult skin.¹

Most bites cause no reaction or effects like a bee sting, and symptoms last minutes to hours.¹ If a bite looks bad, get medical advice. Many skin sores blamed on spiders have other causes.¹

First aid is to wash the bite and apply ice, ice water or a cold compress, and avoid scratching.¹

The bigger risk is a wrong ID. People call wolf spiders recluses and spray the house for no reason.⁵

You usually do not need a treatment. Wolf spiders eat insects and other spiders, so they work for you.²

To clear one out, vacuum it, or trap it under a jar with a sheet of paper and carry it outside.¹ Sticky traps and pest monitors catch wanderers.^1,2

The better fix is shutting the door. Utah State lists minimizing nesting habitat around the property, sealing exterior cracks, tight door sweeps and window screens, less indoor and outdoor clutter and less food for the spiders.² It also suggests switching exterior lights to sodium vapor bulbs.²

Insecticides give only temporary control unless you combine them with housekeeping. UC IPM generally does not recommend them outdoors.¹ Professionals can use dusts in cracks, wall voids and attics.¹ Ask a company what it plans to seal, not just spray.

A national spider cost guide averages $400, with most jobs from $300 to $500. A single visit is $125 to $350 in its table.⁶

By place, a deck or patio runs $75 to $250, a yard $150 to $450, an attic $170 to $500 and a basement or garage $400 to $1,000.⁶

By method, dust runs $100 to $250, traps $100 to $300 and spray $200 to $500.⁶ Quarterly service runs $350 to $750.⁶

The guide has no wolf spider price. For a spider that is beneficial and not known to be a health hazard, cheap steps like sweeping, sealing and sticky traps cover most homes.^2,6

• Seal cracks in the foundation and gaps around windows and doors.¹
• Fit tight door sweeps and window screens.²
• Keep clutter off floors and away from foundations.¹
• Keep leaf litter, trash and heavy vegetation away from the foundation.¹
• Trim plants back from the house.¹
• Cut down on outdoor lighting by doors and windows, since it draws the insects spiders eat.¹
• Store boxes off the floor and seal them with tape.¹
• Reduce the other insects that serve as spider food.²
• Switch exterior lights to sodium vapor bulbs.²
• Use pest monitors to catch wandering spiders.²

Some small black wolf spiders appear in large numbers in lawns in spring, which alarms people.² They are also active at ground level day and night.¹

The indoor visitors are mostly mature males. UC IPM says mature males sometimes wander indoors while searching for females.¹

Wolf spiders may also enter new developments after losing their outdoor habitat.¹ The grid above shows the spring lawn activity and the fall wandering, based on those two notes.^1,2 Spring is the time to seal gaps, before the wanderers arrive.²

Ohio State's funnel weaver fact sheet separates the two look-alikes. Wolf spiders tend to have rounder abdomens, while funnel weavers taper to a point.⁴ Thirteen funnel weaver species have been documented in Ohio.⁴

Ohio State's BYGL names wolf spiders among the common home invaders that get mistaken for brown recluses, and encourages keeping them because they control insects and other arthropods.⁵

A person who applies pesticides to another party's property for pay needs a commercial applicator license from the Ohio Department of Agriculture.⁷ Category 10a is general pest control.⁷

UC IPM lists about 200 wolf spider species in North America. They hunt on the ground, day and night, and make a small thick web only where they rest.¹ Mature males sometimes wander indoors, and spiders may enter new developments after losing their outdoor habitat.¹

The spider that matters more in California is the black widow, the most common harmful spider in the state. The brown recluse does not live there.¹ Wolf spiders are a common worry because they are big and fast, but UC IPM does not list them among the harmful ones.¹

The California Structural Pest Control Board has a Verify a Company or Licensee page you can use before you hire a pest company.⁸