Welcome to this brief introduction to Washington spiders. As with most states, knowledge regarding the totality of the Washington spider population relies on the few experts who perform common search tasks such as shaking the conifer tree limbs and sweeping grassy areas with nets in search of the spider species not seen by most Washington residents.
Even with those limitations, the average spider enthusiast can still find around two hundred species by paying close attention to their surroundings. In some instances, such as the presence of the giant house spider sitting, sometimes unwelcomely in a corner of the room, they are easy to spot. In other instances, such as the presence of funnel weaver spiders in the lawn, only the dew on the grass indicates their presence via their water drop enhanced webs.
Crab Spiders
It’s sometimes difficult to identify Crab Spiders using body color. Body hair and eye configuration can help. Here’s a few examples.
Flower Crab Spider yellow
Yellow and Red Northern Crab Spider
Northern Crab Spider white
Northern Crab Spider yellow
Swift Crab Spider
Rhysodromus histrio
Xysticus cristatus
Xyxtcuis Eyes
Slender Crab Spider
Ground Crab Spider
Lynx Spiders
Striped Lynx Spider Eyes
Lynx spiders can be abundant in residential areas. The following pictures might help with ID.
Striped Lynx Spider top
Western Lynx Spider Eyes
Western Lynx Spider Female
Western Lynx Spider Juvenile
Western Lynx Spider Male
Jumping Spiders
A couple dozen jumping spider species inhabit residential areas across the state, some with limited ranges.
Body color can change over the course of time, as with the species presented here. See this page for more complete information.
Brilliant Jumping Spider face
Brilliant Jumping Spider side
Brilliant Jumping Spider top
Button Hook Leaf Beetle
Oak Jumping Spider
Oak Jumping Spider
Pelegrina aeneola
Bold Jumping Spider
Bold Jumping Spider
Bronze Jumping Spider Female
Bronze Jumping Spider Male
Zebra Jumping Spider
Zebra Jumping Spider Side
Zebra Jumping Spider Eyes
Orb Weaving Spiders
Zygiella x-notata
There’s around one hundred orb weaving spider species, many of them regionally situated. Some of the species come in a range of colors.
Here’s a few of the more common species with a wider geographical range. See Orb Weaving Spiders for more detail.
Yellow Writing Spider bottom view
Yellow Writing Spider top view
Banded Writing Spider
Cross Orb Weaving Spider
Araneus nordmanni
Trashline Orb Weaver
Gray Cross Spider
Larinioides patagiatus orange shade
Larinioides patagiatus brown shade
Larinioides patagiatus bottom
Sleeping Orb Weaving Spider
Long-jawed Orb Weaver
Long-jawed Orb Weaver side view
More Spiders and Relatives
Wolf Spider with Egg Sac
Filmy Dome Spider
Ground Spider
Funnel weaving spider Hololena nedra
Pirate Otter Spider
Opaline or Daddy Long Legs
Dog Tick Female
Dog Tick Male