A Little Bit More
Wolf spiders are very common across North America and are most often seen outside, not in homes. They do get into homes at times but are especially numerous along streams and waterways. Since many of these spiders are large, they often cause fear and unfortunately are more likely to be stepped on rather than observed.
Wolf spider © Solon Morse
Female wolf spiders carrying an egg sac are common enough that some people may even think that this is how they’re supposed to look all the time! Although the sac may be as large as the spider herself, she is able to maintain attachment to it with her spinnerets (these structures are at the end of her abdomen) and will even defend her “treasure” if need be. When the young hatch within the sac they’re not released immediately but remain there a short time until ready to emerge. The egg sac is actually a kind of prison and the young are unable to escape until the female cuts it open. Once the babies are released, they crawl out onto their mother’s back and ride there but neither eat nor are fed during this time. Once the young undergo their first molt (lose their outer skin), they leave their mother’s body and begin life as individuals.
Although wolf spiders look and act rather “ferocious” their greatest enemy is an insect. Wolf spiders are especially vulnerable to wasps that use them as food for their young. Wasps, like the Mud Dauber, sting wolf spiders they find in the open and place their paralyzed-yet-alive bodies in their nests as food for their growing babies.
Activities
Science – Pet Spider
Objectives: Get to know spiders a little better
Materials: plastic jar with lid, 4 liter container or aquarium, saran wrap (covering)
I don’t like to encourage making wild animals pets, but this activity can go a long way toward reducing one's fear of spiders as well as allow students to see spider behavior close up. After all have had a good chance to see the spider “in action”, I’d recommend releasing it where it was found.
Wolf spiders lend themselves well to close examination in the classroom. If you or one of your students can capture a wolf spider, it can be brought into the classroom and observed for days or weeks before release. This unit is being presented for the week of October 23 so for many people, this is the wrong time of the year to find spiders. However, this activity can be picked up again in late spring or summer. A good area to look for one of these spiders is in rocky shorelines along a creek, river or lake. By turning over rocks, you should quickly find a spider that you can use.
Capture the spider in a plastic jar with lid (holes for air) and place in a larger covered jar (4 liters or larger) or covered aquarium with a few rocks, sticks and maybe even a plant or two. Once the spider has settled in, you can obtain some prey items. You may want students to go to the windows in school or in their homes to look for insects. It’s important that the insects be alive so care must be taken when capturing prey items.
Once you have an appropriately-sized prey item (not too large and not too small), it can be carefully placed into the container with the spider. Keep an eye on what happens and encourage those who watch to be “good observers”. Wolf spiders have good vision and if the spider feels “comfortable” in its new surroundings and is hungry, it’s likely that it will soon stalk and catch one of your prey items.
Some things for the students to watch for include:
- Did the spider immediately react to the introduced prey?
- How did the spider actually catch/grab its prey?
- Did the spider immediately bite its prey?
- Did the spider manipulate the prey (move it around) after it was caught?
- Did it hold on to the prey and carry it to a sheltered area?
- How long did the spider hold on to the prey?
- What did it do with the prey after it was finished feeding?
Inquiry Activity you may want to pursue
If you can acquire some different-sized insects, it would be interesting to see whether your spider has a “size preference”. If you can place a variety of different-sized insects into its quarters, you may be able to see a preference for one size over the others. Of course, you may find that it simply grabs the first prey item it finds rather than is selective – see what happens!
Key Concepts
Behavior and Regulation, Predator/Prey Relationships, Reproduction, Structures and Functions
Questions
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