No comprehensive checklist of Oregon spiders exists. Most of the available information covers some popular categories such as common house spiders in Oregon or common garden spiders in Oregon.
Ask an Oregonian about spiders and the topic will more often than not turn to four species: the Giant House Spider; the Hobo Spider; Black Widow Spider; Brown Recluse.
Both the Giant House Spider and Hobo Spider are Pacific Northwest specialties. They are introduced species that are larger than average grass spiders that roam homes around the state during the late summer and fall.
Some talk about the Hobo Spider being a spider of medical concern still receives little documentation in the medical literature. Nevertheless, it gets labeled as a poisonous spider, along with the Black Widow.
Despite the myths, there are no Brown Recluse spiders in Oregon.
A cursory review of Oregon spiders contributed to Bugguide provides a list of over sixty species that spider enthusiasts photographed and documented. Additional spiders have been documented. However, to date they have not been identified at the species level.
Space limitations mean that not all the pictures and descriptions can fit here. Please press the green spiders button for additional Oregon spiders identification help.
Orb Weavers in Oregon
A dozen orb weaving spiders make the list of common Oregon spiders. Araneus, Argiope and Neoscona are probably the most common groups found in residential areas. The video at the top of the page shows a yellow garden spider.
Their round webs make them some of the easiest spiders to photograph and identify.
The picture under this heading shows the Cross Orbweaver. It’s probably one of the most common spiders found in residential settings. The picture shows a Cross Orbweaver.
The Six-spotted Orbweaver, a smaller spider, has a length about one-quarter inch in length, making it smaller than the common orb weavers around the house.
Unlike the orbweavers in the Family Araneidae, Long-jawed Orbweavers can often be found out of their web and basking in the sun. Some of them are called stretch spiders because of the long legs. The two pictures show the same species close up and with the legs stretched.
- Araneus diadematus (Cross Orbweaver)
- Araneus gemmoides (Cat-Faced Spider)
- Araneus nordmanni
- Araneus trifolium (Shamrock Orbweaver)
- trifasciata (Banded Argiope)
- Cyclosa conica (Trashline Orbweaver)
- Larinioides patagiatus
- Larinioides sclopetarius (Gray Cross Spider)
- Metepeira spinipes
- Neoscona arabesca (Arabesque Orbweaver)
Common House Spiders in Oregon
Late summer and early fall are the most common times for male spiders to go wandering into houses looking for mates. There are many common residential spiders that make it into the house not included here.
The picture shows a Giant House Spider. Because they can grow to over three inches in length (including legs) they cause quite a stir whenever they roam into houses, and literally it is almost all the time. Like all spiders, Giant House Spiders bite. They are not listed as a spider of medical concern.
Yellow Sac spiders also wander into the house. There are reports that their bite really packs a wallop.
- Badumna longinqua (Grey House Spider)
- Cheiracanthium mildei (Yellow Sac Spider)
- Eratigena agrestis (Hobo Spider)
- Eratigena duellica (Giant House Spider)
- Holocnemus pluchei (Marbled Cellar Spider)
- Pholcus phalangioides (Longbodied Cellar Spider)
- Parasteatoda tepidariorum (Common House Spider)
- Steatoda grossa (False Black Widow)
- Steatoda triangulosa
- Scotophaeus blackwalli (Mouse Spider)
Common Garden Spiders in Oregon
The types of common garden spiders in Oregon are similar to garden spiders around the United States. Jumping spiders, Lynx spiders and Crab spiders are some of the most numerous and common spiders most people will see.
There’s a few issues associated with jumping spider identification. For example, sometimes female and male jumping spiders look different. For example, the preceding two pictures show a male and female Bronze Jumping Spider.
Most people recognize the stark black body and white spots of the Bold Jumping Spider. Less well known is the fact that immature species start out with bold orange spots like the one in the picture.
Here’a a list of Jumping Spiders in the state. The Phidippus Clarus and Johnsoni reports are about the jumping spiders with red abdomens. They tend to stand out on backyard bushes. However, immature specimens such as the one in the picture, also look a bit different, with only shades of red starting on the abdomen.
- Calositticus palustris
- Colonus hesperus
- Eris militaris (Bronze Jumper)
- Evarcha proszynskii
- Platycryptus californicus
- Salticus scenicus (Zebra Jumper)
- Phidippus Adux (Bold Jumper)
- Phidippus Clarus and Johnsoni groups
- Tutelina similis
Crab Spiders are also very well represented in the state. Most people are familiar with the so called flower crab spiders. They are the colorful species (often white, yellow and red), that sit on flowers waiting for prey. Less well known are the Slender Crab Spiders. Thieir thin body is a good identification stqrter clue.
- Apollophanes margareta (Running Crab)
- Bassaniana utahensis (Bark Crab Spider)
- Coriarachne brunneipes
- Mecaphesa schlingeri
- Philodromus dispar (Running Crab)
- Philodromus rufus
- Tibellus oblongus (Slender Crab)
- Xysticus – Ground Crab Spiders
Finally, a few additional grass spiders and lynx spiders are common in residential areas. Many people associate lynx spiders with the large green spiders so common in the southern areas of the United States. The picture at the top of the section shows a striped lynx. They are fairly small, less than one half an inch in length. They tend to sit quietly on bushes waiting for prey.
Funnel weaver spiders, sometimes called grass spiders can often be easily initially identified by the presence of their funnel web. The presence of spinnerets at the bottom of the abdomen is also a good field identification clue when they are away from their web.
- Oecobius navus (Wall spider)
- Oxyopes scalaris (Western Lynx Spider)
- Oxyopes (Striped Lynx)
- Tegenaria domestica (Barn Funnel Weaver)
- Cobweb Spiders
- Enoplognatha ovata
- Euryopis formosa
- Latrodectus hesperus (Western Black Widow)
- Rugathodes sexpunctatus
- Antrodiaetus pacificus (Folding Door Spider)
- Dolomedes triton (Six-spotted Fishing Spider)
- Dysdera crocata (Woodlouse Hunter)
- Hyptiotes gertschi
- Alopecosa kochi (Sheetweb)
- Neriene digna (Sheetweb)
- Pimoa altioculata
- Titanoeca nigrella
- Zora hespera
- Metellina curtisi Long-jawed Orbweavers
- Metellina mimetoides Long-jawed Orbweavers
- Callobius severus (Hackemesh Weaver)
- Ground Spiders
- Sergiolus columbianus
- Sergiolus montanus
- Herpyllus propinquus (Western Parson Spider)
Additional Oregon Spiders
Finally, for the adventurous who make it out of the neighborhood, here’s a list of about two dozen more spiders that are found in fields and forests around the state. The picture shows a Ground Spider (Sergiolus columbianus). They are very small, about one-quarter inch in length.