Yesterday, I posted the main picture with the following on facebook….

Identify this spider!?! Sam just saved me from it. It was right next to my foot!!!!😱😳😱
Three pics of the same spider on different surfaces. Not the typical wolf spider we usually find. We are thinking brown recluse?

I received several replies, some agreeing, some suggesting grass, wolf, and sack spiders. I have been creeped out ever since. We have found not one, not two or three, but FOUR now, of these evil little beast in the basement, where we do school. It is April, and they are probably waking up from winter, but I don’t appreciate them invading my living space. I have been searching online though all different identification sites trying to identify the little beast.

When the third one was captured this morning, we decided to take time to “observe” the little beast. I told the kids to go get the dissection kit. I used the long tweezers, and CaReFuLLy grabbed one of his legs, and pulled him out of the jar. He did not like that at all. The little beast ATTACKED the tweezers. I was afraid that he would purposely drop his leg off, but he did not.

We were able to take many close up pictures of him. We even used a magnifying lens to get closer pictures. This was really cool. Those little beady eyes are sooo cute. He doesn’t look as threatening up close.

Notice all the tiny little hairs all over his body.

I don’t think he is a wolf or grass spider. They have distinct lines on them. Besides, we see wolf spiders often enough that we can identify them pretty easily. I don’t think it is a brown recluse either. The violin, that we thought we saw yesterday, is facing the wrong way, and it is not distinct enough. He also appears to be different colors in different lights. The white that appears on this legs is just dust/lint from being in the laundry room in the basement. His legs are a solid color.

What I am leaning toward is a Hobo Spider. They are NOT common in PA. BUT….our oldest orders lots of large car parts from garages, that come in large packages. Several have come from parts of the country where hobo spiders ARE common. Could they have hitched a ride in one of the many large boxes of car parts that have come and been stored in our basement and garage (right next to the school room)???? It is possible. One spider with an egg sack? or several spiders? Who knows how these things happen.

I do know, that the little beast is very aggressive, and attacks anything that comes close to touching it. So, he went in the jar of alcohol with the other two evil spiders. Now, all three are dead. We did vacuum the basement, sprayed the basement with home defense, and laid sticky traps down. I know there are benefits to having SOME spiders around, but these little beast are not welcome.

The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings’ palaces. Proverbs 30:28