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Spiders in Toledo, Ohio

According to Ohio State University at Marion, Ohio hosts over 580 spider species, most of which live across the entire state. While spiders may appear frightening, many of Ohio's spiders are in fact beneficial to humans because they hunt other pests such as flies, and very few pose any threat to humans. While two poisonous spiders, the black widow and the brown recluse, have been spotted in Ohio, these spiders do not appear to be native to the state, particularly the northern Toledo area.

Orb Weavers
- The family of orb weaver spiders, known as Araneidae, make up 9.5 percent of the total numbers of spider species in Ohio. Orb weavers may come in a variety of shapes and colors, and can be seen in gardens and other leafy areas. Their common characteristic is the particular web they weave. Within their web is a specific spiral of sticky web material surrounded by non-sticky structural silk. Orb weaver spiders use the sticky webbing to capture an insect that they then wrap in silk. Orb weavers typically re-spin their web daily, consuming the old web in the evenings.
Wolf Spiders
- The wolf spider family, known as Lycosidae, represents 9 percent of the spider species in Ohio and the Toledo area. Rather than spin webs to catch food, wolf spiders actively hunt insects, using their dark, camouflaged bodies to hide while they hunt their prey. Female wolf spiders carry their eggs in a special spider silk bag that hangs from their abdomen. After the eggs hatch, the mother will carry her baby spiders on her legs and back until they can fend for themselves. While some species of wolf spider have poisonous bites, these species are not native to the Toledo area or Ohio in general.
Sheet Web Weavers
- The sheetweb spiders of the family Linyphiidae provide the largest number of spider species to Ohio, making up 16 percent of the total number of spider species. Scientists call these spiders sheetweb spiders because of the particular web many species create to hunt prey. A typical sheetweb spider will weave a wide sheet-like horizontal web under which the spider hangs. Above this sheet, spider strings several strands of spider silk like a vertical net. When an insect flies into one of those vertical strands, it falls down into the sheet. The spider then bites and paralyzes the insect from underneath the web.
Jumping Spiders
- Jumping spiders, from the family Salticidae, make up the second-largest number of spider species in Ohio, contributing 13 percent of species in Ohio. Jumping spiders actively hunt for their prey rather than relying on a web to passively catch insects. Jumping spiders earn their name from their ability to jump many times their body length. Before these spiders jump, they tether themselves to their location with a strand of spider silk, which acts as a safety harness. If the spider misses its jump, it climbs back to its original location using the strand of silk. Jumping spiders have particularly strong vision that they use to search for and track their food.

Animals & Science