Wolf spiders are members of the family Lycosidae, named for their robust and agile hunting skills and excellent eyesight. They live mostly in solitude, hunt alone, and usually do not spin webs. Some are opportunistic hunters, pouncing upon prey as they find it or chasing it over short distances; others wait for passing prey in or near the mouth of a burrow. Wolf spiders resemble nursery web spiders, but wolf spiders carry their egg sacs by attaching them to their spinnerets, while the Pisauridae carry their egg sacs with their chelicerae and pedipalps. Two of the wolf spider's eight eyes are large and prominent; this distinguishes them from nursery web spiders, whose eyes are all of roughly equal size. This can also help distinguish them from the similar-looking grass spiders.
Lycosa tarantula is the species originally known as the tarantula, a name that nowadays in English commonly refers to spiders in another family entirely, the Theraphosidae. It now may be better called the tarantula wolf spider, being in the wolf spider family, the Lycosidae. L. tarantula is a large species found in southern Europe, especially in the Apulia region of Italy and near the city of Taranto, from which it gets its name.
The Artoriinae are a subfamily of wolf spiders. The monophyly of the subfamily has been confirmed in a molecular phylogenetic study, although the relationships among the subfamilies was shown to be less certain.
Geolycosa is a genus of wolf spiders first described in 1904.
Geolycosa pikei is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae from the United States. It can blend into sand, which it also burrows in. The spider can heal its wounds quickly.
Schizocosa saltatrix is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in North America.
Geolycosa gosoga is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States.
Geolycosa missouriensis, the burrowing wolf spider, is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States and Canada. They are most active in summer and hunt similar to the trapdoor spiders, lying in wait in their burrows until they sense the arrival of prey through vibrations in the ground.
Geolycosa ornatipes is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States.
Varacosa avara is a species of wolf spider (Lycosidae) found in the United States and Canada.
Geolycosa riograndae is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States.
Geolycosa wrighti is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States and Canada.
Arctosa sanctaerosae, the Santa Rosa wolf spider, is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States.
Pirata sedentarius is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in North America and Greater Antilles.
Gladicosa pulchra is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States.
Pardosa dorsuncata is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States and Canada.
Pardosa pauxilla is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States.
Geolycosa fatifera is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States.
Geolycosa patellonigra is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States.
Geolycosa hubbelli is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae. It is found in the United States.
