“The Winter Survivor” | Dark Fishing Spider Species: Dolomedes tenebrosus This striking encounter felt less like a simple photo op and more like a mutual observation. Often mistaken for a Wolf Spider due to its size and mottled pattern, the Dark Fishing Spider is a master of stillness. This particular individual showcased the species’ incredible “freeze” defense, reacting to the rhythmic click of the shutter by tapping its legs—testing the vibrations of its environment. Beyond its cryptic camouflage, this species is a biological marvel. They are known to over-winter in a state of semi-activity, producing “anti-freeze” (cryoprotectants) within their bodies to prevent cellular damage during the harsh cold. The standoff lasted several minutes until a momentary break in eye contact gave the spider the opening it needed to vanish back into the shadows of the brickwork. Technical Specs • Body: Sony a7 III (ILCE-7M3) • Lens: FE 28-70mm F3.5-5.6 OSS • Settings: 70mm | f/20 | 1/40s | ISO 4000 • Lighting: Natural / Ambient

“The Winter Survivor” | Dark Fishing Spider

Species: Dolomedes tenebrosus

Technical Specs
• Body: Sony a7 III (ILCE-7M3)
• Lens: FE 28-70mm F3.5-5.6 OSS
• Settings: 70mm | f/20 | 1/40s | ISO 4000
• Lighting: Natural / Ambient

#WarlockPhotography #Photography #Spiders #FishingSpider #Sonya7III

A dark fishing spider pauses on the edge of the enclosure that she has spent the winter in. The sun makes her look a gorgeous orange color!

The fishing spider sits on some bark, looking at the camera. She is saying goodbye!

The fishing spider sits on the same piece of bark, this time looking out into the woods.

today i released my winter residents! miss spots scuttled right off, but pretzel stopped for some glamour shots in the sun ✨ #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus #arachnophiles

A picture of a fishing spider relaxing on a piece of bark in her enclosure. She is a mixture of different browns, greys, and a bit of orange that match very well with the bark.

pretzel sometimes developes this really pretty orange color on the sides of her abdomen, i love it 😊 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus #arachnophiles

A fishing spider is positioned so she is flat against a piece of bark. She has intricate patterns all over that are made of the same exact colors as the bark, which makes her great at blending in.

a close up of pretzel's camouflage 🔍 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus #arachnophiles

A fishing spider is perched on the edge of a large reptile water dish in her enclosure. Three of her feet are in the water as she angles down to get a sip.

pretzel taking a morning sip from her pond! i've never seen her do this before 😊 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus #arachnophiles

A fishing spider is resting on a branch in her enclosure. She has an intricate pattern made of various browns and grays, which help her blend in incredibly well with the bark.

pretzel could start her own line of where's waldo books! i looked everywhere and she was right in front of my face (as always) 🤭 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus #arachnophiles

A fishing spider is stretched out, relaxing on some fake ferns in her enclosure. She is showing off her long legs.

pretzel has found a new nap spot and honestly looks relaxed as hell 💤 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

pretzel would like to thank everyone for the attention on her picture! that's the most likes any of my spider pictures have ever gotten 💖 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

A fishing spider is enjoying a nice cricket. She is dangling off of a branch, her back four legs touching it. Her front four legs are focused on holding her meal.

pretzel's advanced eating pose tonight 🦗 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

A picture of the underside of a spider who is climbing on a clear enclosure wall. In roughly the middle of her, there is a light dot, which may indicate she is female.

i got an even better picture of pretzel, and i can not find another ventral picture of her species, so i'm posting it here for science! 🧐 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

A fishing spider on the wall of her enclosure, freshly molted. Her molt is right next to her.

woke up to find pretzel has finished her molt 💖 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

A fishing spider rests, nearly blending in with the bark behind her. She is facing directly at the camera and her legs are all spread out dramatically in different directions. She is showing off her beautiful inkblot pattern on her abdomen.

pretzel just feels like voguing today ✨ #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

A fishing spider rests on a branch as if she is royalty. She is stretched out and relaxed, showing off the stripes on her legs.

pretzel is big lounging today! 🥨💕 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

A fishing spider sits on a branch, blending in very well with the bark. She has memorizing patterns made of various browns, looking sort of like an inkblot test on her abdomen.

i can get much better pictures of pretzel in her new enclosure! i'm so glad 😊 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

A dark fishing spider sits on a section of a branch. She has an intricate pattern made of various browns, which help her blend in incredibly well on the bark. She is very hard to spot from any sort of distance.

The new enclosure. There is a reptile water dish acting as a pond, but the majority of the enclosure is bark, sticks, leaves, and pine needles. She is in plain sight, but I highly doubt you'll be able to find her!

The enclosure from directly above, giving a better idea of the layout. It was a bit hard to see in the last picture, with all the bark blending into each other.

pretzel got a big upgrade today! she has a small pond now, but this species of fishing spider prefers wooded areas to water, so the majority of the enclosure is bark for her to blend in with. i don't know how i'll ever find her now 😅 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

A six spotted fishing spider (Dolomedes triton) stretches their front pair of legs towards the bottom right of frame out over the surface tension of the pond with their back pair of legs straddling a pond plant that props up their abdomen to show their namesake spots and distinguishing white outlines.

#arachtober
Six-spotted fishing #spider - Dolomedes triton
(Shot near Cincinnati 4-24-24) 🕷️🕸️ #photography #macrophotography #wildlifephotography #wildlife #nature #animal #invertebrate #arachnid #fishingspider #spidersky #ento #spooktober

A picture of a fishing spider on the wall of her enclosure, looking really pretty in the lighting. She's decorated in intricate patterns made of various browns. Her legs are striped, and her abdomen looks like an inkblot test. All I see in it is a cutie!

The same spider, this time on a branch in her enclosure. She is the same exact colors as the bark, so you wouldn't be able to see her from any sort of distance. A lot of times I can't find her when she's right in front of my face!

day 6 of reposting my favorite pictures of my spiders for #arachtober 😊

here we have pretzel! she's so gorgeous, but half the time i can't find her, haha! 🥨 #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus #fishingspider #spider #arachnid #invertebrate

An orangish colored dark fishing spider (Dolomedes tenebrosus) on a rock. They’re shot from the top down but sort of angled to be at them somewhat from the side. Their front legs are extended in front of them to the right of frame to show off the markings all over.

#arachtober
Dark fishing #spider - Dolomedes tenebrosus
(Shot in Cincinnati 10-24-23) 🕷️🕸️ #photography #macrophotography #wildlifephotography #wildlife #nature #animal #invertebrate #arachnid #fishingspider #spidersky #ento

A six-spotted fishing spider (Dolomedes triton) looking straight on at the camera that’s shooting from a little above them while they extend their front legs out over stagnant water, waiting for prey to swim underneath. They are resting on the surface tension of the water while anchored to a stick in the water. Their six spots in their abdomen are mostly visible and their white bands outlining their body are standing out.

#arachtober
Six-spotted fishing #spider - Dolomedes triton
(Shot near Cincinnati 4-24-24) 🕷️🕸️ #photography #macrophotography #wildlifephotography #wildlife #nature #animal #invertebrate #arachnid #fishingspider #spidersky #ento

A whole mess of tiny light green spiders among tangled webs and sticks.

#arachtober
Baby fishing #spiders - Dolomedes sp.
(Shot near Cincinnati 8-18-23) 🕷️🕸️ #photography #macrophotography #wildlifephotography #wildlife #nature #animal #invertebrate #arachnid #spider #fishingspider #spidersky #ento

A striped fishing spider (Dolomedes scriptus) shot so that the spider is facing the bottom right of frame. They’re gripping the edge of tree roots with their back legs while the rest of the body rests on the water and algae awaiting prey. They have a tan body with a thick white band outlining their cephalothorax and abdomen. Their abdomen has chevron stripes.

#arachtober
Striped fishing #spider - Dolomedes scriptus
(Shot near Cincinnati 6-9-23) 🕷️🕸️ #photography #macrophotography #wildlifephotography #wildlife #nature #animal #arachnid #fishingspider #spidersky #ento

A fishing spider is on the wall of her enclosure. She has gorgeous patterning, including stripes on her legs and intricate spots and markings all over her body.

it's hard to get good pictures of pretzel through her enclosure, so this one is a real treat! 🥨💕 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

Beatrice the Tliltocatl Vagans tarantula. She is mostly black with striking red hairs on her abdomen. She is perched on a cork log and fake monsters leaves.

Turnip the Trochosa Ruricola wolf spider. She is small, brown, and taking a moment of rest on some moss and a fake leaf.

Paprika the Phidippus Regius jumping spider. The top of her cephalothorax and abdomen are bright orange, her chelicerae are pink, and the rest of her is off white. She is quite fluffy and very adorable.

new pinned post, aka eddie's directory of spiders! 🕷️💕

if you'd like to see my posts about a specific kind of spider, click and hold one of the tags below and then select "see posts by user"

#tarantula #spider #wolfspider #jumpingspider #fishingspider

spiders are also tagged by genus/species 😊

A picture of a brown fishing spider. She's resting on a brown piece of wood, which is pretty much the exact same colors as her.

pretzel is doing well! she's a little too good at blending in sometimes, and has me getting all worried when she's right in front of my face 🤭 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

A dark fishing spider. She's sitting on a piece of bark and a large oak leaf.

A spider enclosure made out of an Utz's pretzel rod container. There is different pieces of bark, sticks, and other natural materials for the fishing spider to blend in with.

put together an enclosure for the fishing spider! i'm not sure how long i'll keep them, but they'll have it good while staying at the eddie spider resort 💖 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

Absolutely lovely Dolomedes vittatus banded fishing spider

#Dolomedesvittatus #dolomedesspider #fishingspider #Invertebrates #invertfest

A dark fishing spider in a cup. Her abdomen is nice and plump, indicating she might molt soon, and she is missing the third leg on her right side.

The same spider the next week. She has recently molted and is resting on a piece of bark. The leg she was missing has regrown, though it's a little shorter and paler than her other legs right now.

a regular brought me a dark fishing spider from her house last week for me to observe, and this morning she molted and grew her missing leg back! i'm so happy for her 😊 #spider #fishingspider #dolomedes #dolomedestenebrosus

Wharf Spider (aka Dark Fishing Spider)
Mountain View, New York
August 2025

Found this massive beauty guarding her egg sack on the ladder of our dock. Legs included, I'd say close to 4 inches.

#MacroMonday #Spiders #FishingSpider #Adirondacks #NewYork #Wildlife #Photography #Arachnid #EastCoastKin

Image of a spider wasp ferrying prey across the water. The wasp is black, including its wings. The spider is light brown with a white stripe underneath its eyes. The blue water is rippled around the spider.

A spider wasp ferrying prey across the water from Aug 2017.

#dslr #nikon #wasp #spiderwasp #anoplius #anopliusdepressipes #spider #fishingspider #florida

Local Arboretum had Moth Night - this male fishing spider showed up for the free snacks! He was such a handsome guy.

📸 Nikon D850
#photography #insects #arachnids #spiders #photographer #nature #macro #bugs #🕷️ #fishingspider #macrophotography #kentucky #wildlife #digitalphotography #nikon