Wolf Spiders at Sauble Beach, September, 2024

On the weekend of September 28-29,  this year’s tracking apprenticeship group spent two days in the Sauble Beach area.  On the 28th, the majority of our time was spent along the lake shore where we were able to observe a variety of prints in sand, mud and silt that was either wet or in the process of becoming dry.

On the 29th, we moved inland away from the lake where there was much less moisture.  The dew from the night before, while no longer visible as drops, had dampened the sand enough that in the morning when we arrived many prints were very clear, telling the story of coyote, fox, squirrels, mice and other residents who had been active during the preceding evening or early morning. 

 

 

These squirrel prints were very clear in the dew-dampened sand

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sand allowed us to clearly see the recent movement of a fox as they went back and forth across the area.  We were able to compare fox and coyote tracks and analyze gaits and some movements.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The sand also beautifully held onto tracks and trails of smaller creatures including insects, spiders and snakes.  It was these that caught my attention as they were so different from the prints of mammals, and are rarely seen in my neck of the woods where I don’t often see fine-grained sand.

The first new sign that caught my attention was these. 

 

 

Once the first was noticed, we spotted several more.  According to Tracks and Sign of Insects and Invertebrates by Eiseman and Charney, this hole and it’s accompanying tube are likely the den of a “wolf” spider.

As a little girl, “wolf spiders”,  like “fire ants” to the children I spend time with today, were sort of mythical.  Any spider that was big and hairy we called a “wolf spider”, but I have never had the opportunity to learn more about them until now.

Wolf spiders belong to the genus lycosidae (almost 2500 species known worldwide),  and are known for having keen eyesight (and eyeshine when put under a light at night) and are both hunters and opportunists.  They do not use webs to trap their food, and will hunt both in the day and at night.  Females of this genus carry their egg sacs in their spinnerets, occasionally putting them down when hunting.  Once the eggs hatch, the mothers carry them on their back or bellies until they disperse.

Three distinguishing factors that help identify wolf spiders from other spiders are the placement of their eight eyes, presence of tarsal claws, and the angle at which they carry their fangs (chelicrae) (pointing towards each other).

 

 

While wolf spiders can be found in leaf litter, under rocks and even in sphagnum moss, some species, like the ones in the sand in Sauble, build a burrow.  According to Eisemen and Charney, “Many wolf spiders make silk-lined burrows in the ground with circular entrances.  When excavating, they tie the soil together in little pellets which they carry in their chelicrae and drop a short distance from the burrow entrance.”  Some species also create a “turret”, as we saw at Sauble.  These spiders will also block the entrance to their burrows for the winter.  Wolf spiders have also been known to carry their egg sacs up to the mouth of their burrows to sun them.

An additional sign that may be found around wolf spider burrows are their footprints as they make hunting forays as I believe can be found in the image above.

I look forward to learning more about wolf spiders and other invertebrates who leave their trails and sign in the sand in the future.