Care guide
Miami Wolf Spider
Hogna miami
A fast, ground-hunting South Florida native with a mild, non-medically-significant bite. Easy to keep with a burrow-friendly setup, all business and zero handling.
Hogna miami
Miami Wolf Spider: Advanced Care Guide
Keeper Snapshot: A fast, ground-hunting South Florida native with a mild, non-medically-significant bite. Easy to keep with a burrow-friendly setup, all business and zero handling.
Group: Spiders & Other InvertsDifficulty: Spice 2: BeginnerSetup: Terrestrial burrowing wolf spiderHandling: Not recommended
Use This Guide Safely
- Confirm the exact animal. Match this guide to the species, locality, size, and life stage on your label. If the ID is uncertain, use the more conservative part of the range and ask before changing the setup.
- Change one thing at a time. Treat temperature and humidity as target zones, then watch posture, burrowing, drinking, feeding, and molt behavior before making another adjustment.
- Respect the handling boundary. If the guide says no handling, fast, defensive, or medically significant, plan transfers with catch cups, locked lids, and no bare hands. For serious bites, stings, or symptoms, seek emergency medical care.
Quick Snapshot
| Temperature | 72-82°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low-Moderate ambient (45-60%), well ventilated; mostly dry substrate, small dish |
| Setup Type | Terrestrial burrowing wolf spider |
| Substrate | Dry-to-lightly-moist burrowing substrate (sand/soil mix), 3-4 in deep |
| Feeding | 3/8-1/2" crickets/roaches (no larger than body length); juveniles 2x/week, adults every 1-2 weeks, offered at dusk |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 2: Beginner |
| Handling | Not recommended |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
Enclosure Format / Size Class
- juvenile starter burrow setup
- adult terrestrial enclosure with 3-4in dig depth
Warnings First
- Fast, can bolt when the lid opens
- Bite is painful but not medically significant
- Single housing only, cannibalistic
- Females carry an egg sac and then spiderlings on their back; leave undisturbed
- When that brood disperses there are dozens of pinhead spiders in the enclosure at once. Keep pebbles in the water dish so they cannot drown.
Simple Care
- Give a starter burrow or a deep loose substrate corner so it can dig its own.
- Vents low on two opposite walls so air crosses the floor and the burrow mouth.
- Keep mostly dry with a small water dish; mist lightly if humidity crashes below 40%.
- Put pebbles or grit in the dish so dispersing spiderlings cannot drown.
- Feed appropriately sized roaches or crickets once or twice weekly.
- Never house together outside of a female with her own brood.
Advanced Keeper Notes
Enclosure & Microclimate
- Wolf spiders are ambush hunters, not web builders, so floor space and a burrow matter more than height.
- A shallow water dish is enough; avoid keeping substrate wet, which causes mold and mite issues.
- Those mold and mite issues are usually an airflow problem rather than a watering one. Put vents low on two opposite walls, at or just above the substrate, so air crosses the floor and past the burrow mouth. A ground hunter with a dug retreat lives entirely in that bottom layer, and a low enclosure vented only through the lid leaves it still.
- On a dry-leaning species the ventilation and humidity trade works in your favor. Airflow holds ambient at 45 to 60% by itself, so the dish is the main input and the occasional light mist is a top-up rather than a humidity strategy.
- Judge by hand rather than by gauge. Substrate reads dry except around the dish, and any mist dries back within a day.
- Keep the dish shallow and packed with pebbles or coarse grit so the waterline sits below the rim. This matters most on wolf spiders specifically: the female carries her brood on her abdomen, and when they disperse an open dish can take out a large share of them before you notice.
- If you mist, put it at the burrow mouth rather than across the floor. That gives a damp microclimate where a gravid or premolt female sits while the open substrate stays dry and keeps exchanging air.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Feeding: crickets or roach nymphs sized no larger than the spider's body length, roughly 1/8-1/4in for juveniles and 3/8-1/2in for adults. Offer in the evening to match its nocturnal hunting window; juveniles take prey twice weekly, adults every 1-2 weeks.
- Growth: several molts to maturity over roughly a year; lifespan 1-2 years for males, 2-3 years for females.
- Maintenance: remove any uneaten prey within 24-48 hours, and stop feeding entirely at the first signs of premolt (dulled color, reduced activity, hiding) until the new exoskeleton fully hardens, typically 3-7 days for a spider this size.
Possible Origin / Range
- Likely native range: South Florida, especially Miami-Dade County and surrounding areas of the southern peninsula.
- Habitat translation: A dry-leaning terrestrial setup with digging depth and a small water dish. Simple and low-maintenance.
Advanced Keeper Details
- Bolts quickly when disturbed; work in a secure area or over a catch container when opening the enclosure.
- Females are excellent mothers and will carry spiderlings on their abdomen for a period after hatching. Do not separate or disturb a brooding female.
- Not medically significant, but a defensive bite from a spider this size can still break skin; wash and monitor as with any animal bite.
Hogna miami
Miami Wolf Spider
Big Z's Quick Verdict: A fast, ground-hunting South Florida native with a mild, non-medically-significant bite. Easy to keep with a burrow-friendly setup, all business and zero handling.
Group: Spiders & Other InvertsDifficulty: Spice 2: BeginnerSetup: Terrestrial burrowing wolf spiderHandling: Not recommended
Use This Guide Safely
- Confirm the exact animal. Match this guide to the species, locality, size, and life stage on your label. If the ID is uncertain, use the more conservative part of the range and ask before changing the setup.
- Change one thing at a time. Treat temperature and humidity as target zones, then watch posture, burrowing, drinking, feeding, and molt behavior before making another adjustment.
- Respect the handling boundary. If the guide says no handling, fast, defensive, or medically significant, plan transfers with catch cups, locked lids, and no bare hands. For serious bites, stings, or symptoms, seek emergency medical care.
Quick Care Snapshot
| Temp | 72-82°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low-Moderate ambient (45-60%), well ventilated; mostly dry substrate, small dish |
| Setup | Terrestrial burrowing wolf spider |
| Substrate | Dry-to-lightly-moist burrowing substrate (sand/soil mix), 3-4 in deep |
| Feeding | 3/8-1/2" crickets/roaches (no larger than body length); juveniles 2x/week, adults every 1-2 weeks, offered at dusk |
| Handling | Not recommended |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
Recommended Big Z's Setup
- Burrow Buddy for juveniles/adults
Critical Notes
- Fast, can bolt when the lid opens
- Bite is painful but not medically significant
- Single housing only, cannibalistic
- Females carry an egg sac and then spiderlings on their back; leave undisturbed
- When that brood disperses there are dozens of pinhead spiders in the enclosure at once. Keep pebbles in the water dish so they cannot drown.
Care Basics
- Give a starter burrow or a deep loose substrate corner so it can dig its own.
- Vents low on two opposite walls so air crosses the floor and the burrow mouth.
- Keep mostly dry with a small water dish; mist lightly if humidity crashes below 40%.
- Put pebbles or grit in the dish so dispersing spiderlings cannot drown.
- Feed appropriately sized roaches or crickets once or twice weekly.
- Never house together outside of a female with her own brood.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Feeding: crickets or roach nymphs sized no larger than the spider's body length, roughly 1/8-1/4in for juveniles and 3/8-1/2in for adults. Offer in the evening to match its nocturnal hunting window; juveniles take prey twice weekly, adults every 1-2 weeks.
- Growth: several molts to maturity over roughly a year; lifespan 1-2 years for males, 2-3 years for females.
- Maintenance: remove any uneaten prey within 24-48 hours, and stop feeding entirely at the first signs of premolt (dulled color, reduced activity, hiding) until the new exoskeleton fully hardens, typically 3-7 days for a spider this size.
Current Big Z's catalog: Yes
Hogna miami
Miami Wolf Spider: Advanced Care Guide
Keeper Snapshot: A fast, ground-hunting South Florida native with a mild, non-medically-significant bite. Easy to keep with a burrow-friendly setup, all business and zero handling.
Group: Spiders & Other InvertsDifficulty: Spice 2: BeginnerSetup: Terrestrial burrowing wolf spiderHandling: Not recommended
Use This Guide Safely
- Confirm the exact animal. Match this guide to the species, locality, size, and life stage on your label. If the ID is uncertain, use the more conservative part of the range and ask before changing the setup.
- Change one thing at a time. Treat temperature and humidity as target zones, then watch posture, burrowing, drinking, feeding, and molt behavior before making another adjustment.
- Respect the handling boundary. If the guide says no handling, fast, defensive, or medically significant, plan transfers with catch cups, locked lids, and no bare hands. For serious bites, stings, or symptoms, seek emergency medical care.
Quick Snapshot
| Temperature | 72-82°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low-Moderate ambient (45-60%), well ventilated; mostly dry substrate, small dish |
| Setup Type | Terrestrial burrowing wolf spider |
| Substrate | Dry-to-lightly-moist burrowing substrate (sand/soil mix), 3-4 in deep |
| Feeding | 3/8-1/2" crickets/roaches (no larger than body length); juveniles 2x/week, adults every 1-2 weeks, offered at dusk |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 2: Beginner |
| Handling | Not recommended |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
Enclosure Format / Size Class
- juvenile starter burrow setup
- adult terrestrial enclosure with 3-4in dig depth
Warnings First
- Fast, can bolt when the lid opens
- Bite is painful but not medically significant
- Single housing only, cannibalistic
- Females carry an egg sac and then spiderlings on their back; leave undisturbed
- When that brood disperses there are dozens of pinhead spiders in the enclosure at once. Keep pebbles in the water dish so they cannot drown.
Simple Care
- Give a starter burrow or a deep loose substrate corner so it can dig its own.
- Vents low on two opposite walls so air crosses the floor and the burrow mouth.
- Keep mostly dry with a small water dish; mist lightly if humidity crashes below 40%.
- Put pebbles or grit in the dish so dispersing spiderlings cannot drown.
- Feed appropriately sized roaches or crickets once or twice weekly.
- Never house together outside of a female with her own brood.
Advanced Keeper Notes
Enclosure & Microclimate
- Wolf spiders are ambush hunters, not web builders, so floor space and a burrow matter more than height.
- A shallow water dish is enough; avoid keeping substrate wet, which causes mold and mite issues.
- Those mold and mite issues are usually an airflow problem rather than a watering one. Put vents low on two opposite walls, at or just above the substrate, so air crosses the floor and past the burrow mouth. A ground hunter with a dug retreat lives entirely in that bottom layer, and a low enclosure vented only through the lid leaves it still.
- On a dry-leaning species the ventilation and humidity trade works in your favor. Airflow holds ambient at 45 to 60% by itself, so the dish is the main input and the occasional light mist is a top-up rather than a humidity strategy.
- Judge by hand rather than by gauge. Substrate reads dry except around the dish, and any mist dries back within a day.
- Keep the dish shallow and packed with pebbles or coarse grit so the waterline sits below the rim. This matters most on wolf spiders specifically: the female carries her brood on her abdomen, and when they disperse an open dish can take out a large share of them before you notice.
- If you mist, put it at the burrow mouth rather than across the floor. That gives a damp microclimate where a gravid or premolt female sits while the open substrate stays dry and keeps exchanging air.
Feeding, Growth & Maintenance
- Feeding: crickets or roach nymphs sized no larger than the spider's body length, roughly 1/8-1/4in for juveniles and 3/8-1/2in for adults. Offer in the evening to match its nocturnal hunting window; juveniles take prey twice weekly, adults every 1-2 weeks.
- Growth: several molts to maturity over roughly a year; lifespan 1-2 years for males, 2-3 years for females.
- Maintenance: remove any uneaten prey within 24-48 hours, and stop feeding entirely at the first signs of premolt (dulled color, reduced activity, hiding) until the new exoskeleton fully hardens, typically 3-7 days for a spider this size.
Possible Origin / Range
- Likely native range: South Florida, especially Miami-Dade County and surrounding areas of the southern peninsula.
- Habitat translation: A dry-leaning terrestrial setup with digging depth and a small water dish. Simple and low-maintenance.
Advanced Keeper Details
- Bolts quickly when disturbed; work in a secure area or over a catch container when opening the enclosure.
- Females are excellent mothers and will carry spiderlings on their abdomen for a period after hatching. Do not separate or disturb a brooding female.
- Not medically significant, but a defensive bite from a spider this size can still break skin; wash and monitor as with any animal bite.