Lycosoidea

The Lycosoidea clade includes several families of primarily ground-dwelling spiders that are active and often nocturnal or crepuscular. They are known for their non-web-based hunting strategies and, in some cases, highly developed parental behavior.

🧬 Key Features

• Relatively developed vision, with eyes arranged in characteristic rows
• Little or no webbing used for prey capture (though retreats may be built)
• Hunting lifestyle, typically ground-based
• Females carry their egg sac or their young on their back (in Lycosidae)

🕷️ Families in the Lycosoidea Clade

• Lycosidae – Wolf spiders, terrestrial and highly mobile
• Pisauridae – Nursery web spiders, often near water
• Trechaleidae – Tropical semi-aquatic spiders, often understudied

🌍 Habitat and Ecology

Lycosoidea spiders typically live:

• On the ground, in leaf litter or on open substrates
• Near water (especially Pisauridae and Trechaleidae)
• In open, sunny areas or active at dusk and dawn

🧭 Field Observation

Some species are easily spotted at night due to eyeshine when illuminated with a flashlight (tapetum lucidum effect). Their active hunting behavior makes them particularly interesting subjects for field observation and macrophotography.