Smithsonian magazine's 22nd Annual Photo Contest | Made possible through the support of MPB.com

15th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Wolf Spider (Hogna carolinensis)

On a zoological field course in Arizona, I noticed that my head torch was catching the intense eye shine of an organism on the ground ten meters in front of me. At first, I thought it was an amphibian of some sort, but as I got close I realised I was looking at a huge arachnid! This huge Wolf Spider remained motionless, as fellow students and I look at the beast under the light of our head torches.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 09.2015
Date Uploaded: 11.2017
Photo Location: Arizona, United States of America
Camera: PENTAX *ist DL2
Copyright: © JOSH PHANGURHA