Parson spider (Herpyllus ecclesiasticus)

The parson spider is a spider in the family Gnaphosidae that is not dangerous to people. GBIF holds 1,226 licensed U.S. records of it; it reaches our listing threshold in 38 states, most of all Virginia (173), New York (82) and Pennsylvania (67). Its observation records peak in July.

38states on record

1,226licensed U.S. records

Julpeak month, observations

Novenomous to people

Herpyllus ecclesiasticus, commonly called the eastern parson spider, is a species of spider named after the abdominal markings resembling an old-style cravat worn by clergy in the 18th century. It is mainly found in North America east of the Rocky Mountains, from Alberta east to Nova Scotia in Canada, and south through the United States to Tamaulipas, Mexico, and Florida. Individuals can be found throughout the year, both in homes and under rocks or logs in deciduous forests.

From Wikipedia: Herpyllus ecclesiasticus, text under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Bitten? Call 911 for a venomous snakebite or any bite with trouble breathing. For advice on any bite or sting, call Poison Help at 1-800-222-1222 (free, 24/7, U.S.-wide). Do not cut the wound, suck out venom or use a tourniquet. General information, not medical advice. Do not handle or try to identify a snake or spider by this page; if unsure, treat it as venomous.

Is the parson spider poisonous or venomous?

Not in any medically significant way. Like almost all spiders the parson spider (family Gnaphosidae) has venom for its prey, but it is not a widow or recluse, the two U.S. groups whose bites need medical attention.

Which states have the parson spider?

Records are spread over 38 states; the top three, Virginia, New York and Pennsylvania, hold 26% of them.

Source: GBIF, read 2026-09-29. A state is listed once GBIF holds at least 10 records of the species there under any license; Records counts only CC0 and CC BY records, so a listed state can show fewer.
#	State	Records	Share of state spiders	Rank in state
1	Virginia	173	1.5%	17th of 176
2	New York	82	1.3%	18th of 149
3	Pennsylvania	67	0.9%	22nd of 164
4	Illinois	65	0.3%	46th of 243
5	Massachusetts	63	1.4%	18th of 189
6	Ohio	58	0.8%	30th of 332
7	North Carolina	55	0.7%	37th of 184
8	Maryland	53	0.9%	29th of 153
9	Michigan	46	1.9%	12th of 122
10	Minnesota	44	1.5%	17th of 145
11	Texas	40	0.1%	115th of 386
12	Vermont	39	2.5%	11th of 74
13	Wisconsin	34	1.1%	18th of 149
14	Oklahoma	32	0.6%	36th of 149
15	Georgia	31	0.5%	46th of 186
16	Indiana	31	0.7%	29th of 133
17	Delaware	29	1.4%	18th of 71
18	Maine	28	3.0%	10th of 297
19	New Hampshire	27	2.0%	13th of 72
20	Connecticut	23	2.3%	11th of 86
21	New Jersey	22	1.0%	28th of 127
22	Nebraska	21	1.7%	11th of 71
23	Louisiana	20	0.5%	39th of 107
24	Colorado	17	0.4%	28th of 378
25	Missouri	14	0.6%	36th of 117
26	Tennessee	14	0.4%	54th of 138
27	West Virginia	14	1.8%	15th of 90
28	Alabama	13	0.4%	67th of 143
29	Iowa	13	1.9%	9th of 57
30	Arkansas	10	0.6%	41st of 114
31	Kansas	9	0.5%	30th of 94
32	Florida	7	0.1%	171st of 237
33	Kentucky	7	0.4%	55th of 103
34	Mississippi	5	0.4%	52nd of 117
35	North Dakota	4	4.7%	6th of 115
36	South Dakota	3	1.6%	10th of 29
37	Rhode Island	2	1.2%	21st of 53
38	South Carolina	2	0.1%	94th of 121

When is the parson spider seen?

Across the U.S., observation records of the parson spider run through most of the year, peaking in July with 18% of them. Winter (December to February) holds 11% of them.

Season by state

Observation records run through most of the year in Virginia. Among states whose main season falls within one calendar year, it starts earliest in January (Maryland and Michigan) and latest in April (Illinois, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin). The most common peak month is July, shared by Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Source: GBIF observation records (CC0, CC BY) by state and month, read 2026-09-29. States with fewer than 30 observation records with a month are left out.
State	Main season	Peak month	Observation records
Virginia	most of the year	December	172
New York	March through October	August	82
Massachusetts	March through October	July	62
Pennsylvania	April through October	July	61
Ohio	March through September	July	58
North Carolina	March through August	May	55
Maryland	January through September	August	53
Illinois	April through September	August	47
Michigan	January through September	July	46
Minnesota	March through October	July	44
Vermont	February through September	April	39
Wisconsin	April through September	August	33
Texas	April through December	May	32
Georgia	November through July	July	31

Where the parson spider is recorded in each state

Virginia

Virginia holds 173 licensed records, the 17th most recorded of 176 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Virginia run through most of the year, peaking in December; most licensed records come from Fairfax County, Loudoun County and Arlington County. Next come Prince William County (8) and Powhatan County (5).

New York

New York holds 82 licensed records, the joint 18th most recorded of 149 spiders listed there. Its observation records in New York run mostly March through October, peaking in August; most licensed records come from Tompkins County, Greene County and Rockland County. Next come Wyoming County (6) and Monroe County (5).

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania holds 67 licensed records, the 22nd most recorded of 164 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Pennsylvania run mostly April through October, peaking in July; most licensed records come from Centre County, Allegheny County and Westmoreland County. Next come Bucks County (6) and Crawford County (4).

Illinois

Illinois holds 65 licensed records, the 46th most recorded of 243 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Illinois run mostly April through September, peaking in August; most licensed records come from Champaign County, Cook County and Will County. Next come DuPage County (6) and McLean County (5).

Massachusetts

Massachusetts holds 63 licensed records, the 18th most recorded of 189 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Massachusetts run mostly March through October, peaking in July; most licensed records come from Middlesex County, Barnstable County and Plymouth County. Next come Worcester County (6) and Essex County (6).

Ohio

Ohio holds 58 licensed records, the 30th most recorded of 332 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Ohio run mostly March through September, peaking in July; most licensed records come from Cuyahoga County, Franklin County and Summit County. Next come Lake County (5) and Lucas County (3).

North Carolina

North Carolina holds 55 licensed records, the 37th most recorded of 184 spiders listed there. Its observation records in North Carolina run mostly March through August, peaking in May; most licensed records come from Orange County, Wake County and Durham County. Next come Chatham County (4) and Yancey County (3).

Maryland

Maryland holds 53 licensed records, the joint 29th most recorded of 153 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Maryland run mostly January through September, peaking in August; most licensed records come from Montgomery County, Anne Arundel County and Baltimore County. Next come Howard County (5) and Prince George's County (5).

Michigan

Michigan holds 46 licensed records, the joint 12th most recorded of 122 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Michigan run mostly January through September, peaking in July; most licensed records come from Midland County, Kalamazoo County and St. Clair County. Next come Charlevoix County (2) and Grand Traverse County (2).

Minnesota

Minnesota holds 44 licensed records, the 17th most recorded of 145 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Minnesota run mostly March through October, peaking in July; most licensed records come from Hennepin County, Carlton County and Anoka County. Next come Dakota County (4) and Ramsey County (4).

Texas

Texas holds 40 licensed records, the 115th most recorded of 386 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Texas run mostly April through December, peaking in May; most licensed records come from Fort Bend County, Bexar County and Dallas County. Next come Brazos County (3) and Travis County (3).

Vermont

Vermont holds 39 licensed records, the 11th most recorded of 74 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Vermont run mostly February through September, peaking in April; most licensed records come from Windsor County, Washington County and Bennington County. Next come Windham County (5) and Chittenden County (4).

Wisconsin

Wisconsin holds 34 licensed records, the 18th most recorded of 149 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Wisconsin run mostly April through September, peaking in August; most licensed records come from Dane County, Brown County and Waukesha County. Next come Grant County (2) and Milwaukee County (2).

Oklahoma

Oklahoma holds 32 licensed records, the 36th most recorded of 149 spiders listed there. Most of its licensed records in Oklahoma come from Mayes County, McIntosh County and Cleveland County. Next come Osage County (2) and Stephens County (2).

Georgia

Georgia holds 31 licensed records, the joint 46th most recorded of 186 spiders listed there. Its observation records in Georgia run mostly November through July, peaking in July; most licensed records come from DeKalb County, Gwinnett County and Towns County. Next come Cobb County (3) and Fulton County (3).

Indiana

Indiana holds 31 licensed records, the joint 29th most recorded of 133 spiders listed there. Most of its licensed records in Indiana come from Lake County, Tippecanoe County and Hamilton County. Next come Monroe County (3) and Vanderburgh County (3).

Top counties in the U.S.

Source: GBIF licensed records by county (GADM level 2), read 2026-09-29.
#	County	State	Records	Share of U.S.
1	Fairfax County	Virginia	98	8.0%
2	Middlesex County	Massachusetts	18	1.5%
3	Champaign County	Illinois	16	1.3%
4	Loudoun County	Virginia	14	1.1%
5	Mayes County	Oklahoma	13	1.1%
6	Windsor County	Vermont	13	1.1%
7	Montgomery County	Maryland	11	0.9%
8	Hennepin County	Minnesota	11	0.9%
9	Dane County	Wisconsin	11	0.9%
10	Orange County	North Carolina	10	0.8%
11	Wake County	North Carolina	10	0.8%
12	Barnstable County	Massachusetts	9	0.7%
13	Cuyahoga County	Ohio	9	0.7%
14	Franklin County	Ohio	9	0.7%
15	Arlington County	Virginia	9	0.7%

How recent are the parson spider records?

Most of what is known about the parson spider is recent: 94% of dated U.S. records were made in 2017–2026, and half date from 2023 or later. The oldest dated record is from 1928; the busiest year was 2026, with 177 records.

Source: GBIF licensed U.S. records with a year, read 2026-09-29.
Decade	Records	Share
1920s	1	0.1%
1960s	4	0.3%
1970s	1	0.1%
1980s	9	0.7%
1990s	6	0.5%
2000s	4	0.3%
2010s	186	14.5%
2020s	1,074	83.6%

Species recorded in the same counties

Of the 225 counties where the parson spider is most recorded, 144 are also top counties for the bold jumper, more than for any other spider. None of its closest neighbors is venomous.

Source: GBIF licensed records, top counties per species and state, read 2026-09-29.
Species	Shared counties
Bold jumper	144
Familiar jumping spider	135
Nursery web spider	134
Black-and-yellow argiope	130
Bronze jumper	118
Flea jumping spider	116
Dark fishing spider	114
Spotted orbweaver	111

Other members of the family Gnaphosidae with profiles here: Mouse spider.

Mouse spiderScotophaeus blackwalli

GBIF records read 2026-09-29. Listed: any license. Counted: CC0/CC BY only. How we count.

About these numbers

A species is listed for a state once GBIF holds at least 10 records of it located inside the state by coordinates, under any license. Every count, share, month and county shown is computed only from records published under CC0 or CC BY, so a listed species can show few or no counted records. Monthly patterns show when people record spiders, which also reflects when people are outdoors. Venomous status follows taxonomy: pit vipers and coral snakes; widow and recluse spiders; the Arizona bark scorpion. Records filed under older names count for the species they belong to today. Full methodology.