The Black purse-web spider (Sphodros niger) is a mygalomorph

Mygalomorphae

The Mygalomorphae, , are an infraorder of spiders. The latter name comes from the orientation of the fangs which point straight down and do not cross each other .-Description:...

 spider from the Eastern United States

Eastern United States

The Eastern United States, the American East, or simply the East is traditionally defined as the states east of the Mississippi River. The first two tiers of states west of the Mississippi have traditionally been considered part of the West, but can be included in the East today; usually in...

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Description

Males have a body length of about 11 mm, 29 mm with extended legs. The body is black, except for chocolate brown legs. Although the species was first described in 1842, females were first described in 1980. This results from the male's behavior of wandering about in search of mates, while females, which reside in tubes, are rarely found.