While mowing her lawn, this woman was in shock when she saw a huge black spider in the grass with hundreds of babies clinging to its back.
The woman, Jo Forbes, immediately took photos of the spider and then shared in a Facebook group, Australian Spider Identification, to learn more.
She lives in Cobargo, NSW and paused her gardening to snap these creepy crawlies.
The users quickly identified it as the female wolf spider-one of the few spider species that carries babies on the back for protection.
What Kind of Spider Is the Wolf Spider?
This spider is venomous; however, it’s not lethal and doesn’t endanger humans unless it’s provoked on purpose.
They’re described as large, fast, and dark.
It’s interesting that most of the species of this spider family don’t catch prey with webs like spiders usually do it, but rather chase and pounce on it, which is similar to wolves. This is where the name inspiration comes from.
These spiders can grow to more than 1.2 inches and live up to 18 months. They’re well adapted to live practically anywhere and often in colder habitats like rocky tops of mountains and warmer regions too like grassland and rainforest.
Forbes then safely moved the mom and her young ones out of the garden; however, when she came back for another photo, the babies were all gone.
Although some users in the group were shocked and afraid of this spider, some described it as incredible and beautiful.
Ben Shoard is a spider enthusiast who shared a post about wolf spiders saying they’re robust and agile hunters, common in gardens and lawns.
He said how if you were to use a torch in your garden at night, you may spot their blue eyes reflection shining at you. Most of us would certainly not want this to happen!
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