Pantropical Jumping Spider

I assumed at first this was a wolf spider, Lycosidae sp. I am hesitant to call it a jumping spider because this individual was “huge” — I would have put it at half an inch long — and pantropical jumping spiders seem to max out at 12mm with the females. On the other hand, half an inch is 12.7mm, and this gorgeous young lady has very distinctive markings which really resemble that of a female pantropical jumping spider, Plexippus paykulli.

Also, her last set of eyes is way back on the sides of her head — those are the eyeballs you can see in this photo. (Her “business eyes” are all up front, pointed at her prey.) The last set of eyes on wolf spiders tends to be both larger, and set further forward on the head, nearer the “business eyes”.

Pantropical jumping spiders are native to Asia but have been introduced to Florida. They live near human habitations (this one was in the parking lot of a Publix!), including inside buildings. They are able to kill prey twice their own size — there have been recorded instances of prey running off with the spider still clinging to it, eventually becoming exhausted and succumbing.

2 Comments Add yours

  1. Beautiful little jumper!
    Love your blog, narrative style and enthusiasm for our little animal neighbors and fellow passengers of Spaceship Earth. Found you after doing a search on Mabel orch. spiders. Please keep on! Cheers.

    1. Awww, thank you for saying hi! You do some gorgeous work yourself — love your landscapes!

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