Schizocosa ocreata is a species of wolf spider in the family Lycosidae that is found in North America.

Similarly to other species, these spiders do not actually produce webs, but depend on their other acute senses, such as vision, to still exhibit elements of exploitative competition.

Males that were exposed to P. aeruginosa as a juvenile were more likely to have higher adult encapsulation rates as well as have an increased density of melanization.

Hence, it is important to seek medical attention if you are unsure of the kind of spider bite you have, feel respiratory distress, or are in severe pain.

In addition, the tufts of bristle pair on the male is a secondary sexual characteristic that is the only physical feature that distinguishes this spider from its sibling species.

[8] The species was moved to the Schizocosa genus when it was erected in 1904 by Ralph Vary Chamberlin at which point its subspecies "Lycosa" ocreata pulchra was synonymized with S.

A large amount of food available for consumption is thought to help aid the spiders to allocate their resources and energy to reproductive success.

But, the spiders that do not build webs, such as the Schizocosa ocreata, show signs that they utilize exploitative competition in order to capture prey.

There is much variation in the number of instars, the time for development, the width of the cephalothorax, and mass varied with different dietary patterns.

Instars refer to the phases between two molting periods when an invertebrate animal develops into sexual maturity.

[11] Cuticular hydrocarbons, which cover the cuticles on insects and are waterproof, have been discovered to play a major role as a sex pheromone in spiders.

Since males are the only ones that have tufts, which is the area on the forelegs covered in bristles, the usage of the multifactorial approach revealed how the female preferences are decided.

In addition to the effects of exposures on the choosiness of female during mating, the rate of courtship may also be attributed to males' eavesdropping behaviors.

These courting behaviors are not exhibited by S. ocreata spiders when the video is of a male that is simply walking (or non-courting).

Even though it’s unknown how much impact the venom injections have on the females, there is a possibility that there is a cost for the male’s future reproductive success as well.

Hence, this suggested that there potentially is an immune system that works to prevent the ingested pathogens from getting into the hemolymph, which is the blood equivalent in most invertebrates.

The CFU count in the hemolymph system shows that the spiders’ immune functions are working in some aspects to reduce the pathogens.

But, the “freezing” technique, which is representative of the stationary spider, is a highly effective tactic when faced with predators.

A constant supply of blood volume will be needed for hydraulic locomotion, which is the process through which increased pressure in fluids from their cephalothorax stretch out their legs, and may cause reduced mobility.

[16] The only spiders that are found to have medically significant bites in the United States are the black widow and the brown recluse.

[18] Prompt medical care should be sought if one is unsure whether the bite was from a venomous spider or not and if severe pain develops, or if problems with breathing occurs.