Bug FAQDrassyllus aprilinus
Drassyllus aprilinus · Order: Araneae · Family: Gnaphosidae
Adult Drassyllus aprilinus spiders are small, with males about 3.9 mm long and females about 4.5 mm long. Females have a yellow-brown cephalothorax, red-brown legs, and a dark abdomen marked by a large black spot that includes a cross-shaped pattern and two tiny white spots; the underside is pale with a black “U” on the abdomen, while males are mostly reddish-yellow without these markings. They live on the ground in forested areas such as oak-hickory, pine, sand-pine, beech-magnolia forests and also in pecan and citrus groves, and they are found throughout the year in the eastern United States and Mexico.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Female Drassyllus aprilinus have a yellowish-brown cephalothorax, red-brown legs, a dark abdomen with a large black spot that contains a crosshair shape and two small white spots, and a pale underside with a black “U” mark. Males lack the distinctive female markings and are generally reddish-yellow across most of the body.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Males average 3.86 mm in length, while females average 4.50 mm.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
They are ground-dwelling spiders often found under leaf litter or stones.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Adult males and females can be found throughout the year.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Adults are present year-round.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Drassyllus aprilinus occurs in the eastern United States and Mexico.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 16 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Ohio, Texas, Mississippi, Virginia, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, North Carolina.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
How can I tell this spider apart from similar ones?
Examine the genitalia: males have a median projection on the terminal apophysis, while females have a barely visible median plate on the epigynum.
Source: Wikipedia
Where might I find Drassyllus aprilinus in my yard?
Look under leaf litter or stones in forested or grove areas such as oak-hickory, pine, beech-magnolia, pecan, or citrus trees.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Gnaphosidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drassyllus_aprilinus
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-27 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-27.