The AFTER photo

a no longer gravid lady, carrying her eggsac

the Pisauridae, the nursery web spider family, look really similar to wolf spiders, dont they? they might be difficult for the untrained eye to tell apart, but there are a few key differences

one way to differentiate nursery web spiders from wolf spiders is to look at their eye arrangement (compare Pisauridae to Lycosidae in the image linked). also, nursery web spiders have three claws at the end of each "foot", while wolf spiders only have two.

another way, though it only works with adult females, is to

1) look at how they're carrying their eggsac (wolf spiders attach the sac to their spinnerets, basically carrying it with their ass— nursery web spiders carry the sac under their body using their mouthparts and pedipalps), and

2) look for the babies. nursery web spiders got their name because shortly before the spiderlings begin to emerge from the protective sac, the mother constructs a nursery web, usually in a shrubby plant, where the spiderlings spend their first week or so while the mother stays nearby. wolf spider mothers carry their spiderlings on their abdomen for a time until they're ready to disperse.

unfortunately, i didn't get to see her spiderlings hatch and grow; she disappeared one day and while i hope she just went to find a good spot for her nursery, realistically i know that she and her developing eggs would have made a nutritious snack for any number of predators