It was unseasonably warm yesterday, so I was out in the wild looking for late season dragonfly survivors. I came up empty-handed for dragonflies, but did spot this cool-looking wolf spider (g. Gladicosa) at Occoquan Regional Park.
Several years ago fellow dragonfly enthusiast Walter Sanford spotted an Autumn Meadowhawk dragonfly in early January, so I knew that it was at least a theoretical possibility that I might see one. According to Walter’s blog posting about his sighting in 2016, the temperature was 51 degrees (10 degrees C) when he spotted the dragonfly and it was even warmer yesterday—58 degrees (14 degrees C). I scoured all kinds of locations where the sunlight was shining, anticipating that a dragonfly likely would be basking in the sun.
I spotted this spider in a sunlit area strewn with fallen leaves. I suspected that it was some kind of wolf spider, but relied on experts in several Facebook groups for confirmation. One of the experts was even able to identify the genus of the spider, but not the specific species. According to Wikipedia, wolf spiders “are robust and agile hunters with excellent eyesight. They live mostly in solitude and hunt alone, and do not spin webs. Some are opportunistic hunters pouncing upon prey as they find it or even chasing it over short distances. Some wait for passing prey in or near the mouth of a burrow.”
I doubt that I will see any dragonflies this month or even any more spiders, but I will keep looking for a little while longer, especially on days when the temperatures rise this high above the freezing level.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Nice Mike! You never know what you might find to photograph when out and about in January! Sort of like a Treasure Hunt!
That’s a serious looking spider. Great shot.
I had never heard of wolf spiders. Thank you for the interesting post.
Interesting find but a bit creepy!
You’re not alone, Chris, in having that feeling. Several of my Facebook friends responded with similar comments. 🙂
Nice weather for photo hunting–our cool snap is finally over and it’s 77F today, great for yardwork and a hike in the bush. That’s a cool shot of your wolf spider!
Thanks, Gary. We were back below freezing last night and today is supposed to be in the low 40’s, much more typical for January here.
Nice find for a January day, Mike. In December I had a few comeout of the siding on our house where they would hide during the summer. Guess that’s their overwintering shelter. But I don’t think I’ll see any for a while even if it does warm up again before at least March rolls around.
Thanks, Steve. We have a lot more winter days here that I would call “transitional,” where it warms up to spring-like temperatures and it is fun to see what comes out to enjoy the sun. I think it is more consistently cold where you are for months on end.