Auster needs some help identifying this spider. A friend of his encountered it in Florida, US. It is tiny, less than an inch across, and was found on a mailbox. When the friend approached, it brandished its legs, jumped on her, then scampered away to terrorize someone else.Any arachnophiles out there care to label this little assailant? Some sort of jumping spider, by my taxonomic expertise ends there.
BTW, jumping spiders are the only arachnids I can tolerate. I can even pick them up (when they're willing). Aren't you proud of me? Of course, drop a daddy-long-legs in my lap, and I go comatose and start frothing at the mouth.
UPDATE: Denita, nonspecific, and Jade have identified the species as Salticidae, Hentzia palmarum. Thanks, you three. But Jack takes the prize for having identified this spider as Billy.
I'm very proud of you!
ReplyDeleteI do the frozen-with-fear-and-little-noises-of-agony-thing whenever I see a spider of any kind... And thats kind of sad when you live alone on an old attic with allot of cracks and crevices.
I *LOVE!* jumping spiders! They are the most expressive spiders on the planet! You can practically watch their tiny little mental gears turning as they navigate across a window pane. I never grow tired of them!
ReplyDeleteHowever, this one's got me stumped! I thought just Googling "Salticidae" and viewing the Image files might help me find it. I'm on page 14 and I'm still turning up blanks. I keep forgetting the jumping spider clan is notoriously numerous...
--TwoDragons
Give me 24 hours. I'll have an ID for you :)
ReplyDeletehttp://bugguide.net/node/view/6792/bgpage
ReplyDeleteIs it this guy? Hentzia palmarum
The body reminds me a lot of the Nursery Web spiders we have here in New Hampshire.
ReplyDeleteI think they brandish, but I'm not too sure about the jumping thing..
That's Billy.
ReplyDeleteSalticidae Hentzia sp. (more than likely, palmarum). Great call nonspecific! :)
ReplyDeleteJust wanted to thank you guys for identifying the beasty. ^^ It's been bugging me and my friend for a while now. At least, we can sleep well, knowing that mutant spiders are not out to get us...
ReplyDelete*the terrorized friend*
ReplyDeleteBilly, eh? Glad to know it has a name, guess I can relax and just cuddle up to it now. >>; Or call homeland security on it...
Thanks!
Really? Jumping spiders pack quite a nasty bite for their size, where the commonly-known daddy-long-legs are not true spiders, though of the arachnid family, but rather called harvestmen and are unable to penetrate human skin with their bite. :) That should put you a little at ease... maybe? Or just make you hate jumping spiders. lol
ReplyDelete