i live in south mississippi and i seen this spider one night in a parking lot. Ive looked all over the internet to identify it, it kind of looks like a hobo spider but all the research i have done says they are north western spiders so if someone could, please help me identify this spider. It was roughly 2"X 2" and looked like it had a bigger back than a hobo.
This message was edited Oct 21, 2009 4:42 PM
This appears to be a female wolf spider (family Lycosidae) with her babies on her back - see http://tinyurl.com/yhpolt3 for an image. Unlike most spiders, female wolf spiders show some degree of parental care, allowing their young to 'piggy-back' for a few days after hatching. Although large specimens can give one a painful bite if handled carelessly, they are not dangerous to humans.
