Monday, May 20, 2013

Hentz Jumping Spider

Yesterday I encountered a feisty spider on a leaf of our white hydrangea (Annabelle). Mostly dark brown in color, he had two big black eyes, a white stripe running under them and around his carapace, a long slender abdomen with a white stripe bordering it as well, and two muscular dark brown forelegs. He also had long black-and-white striped chelicerae. I fell in love with him instantly.

After doing some research, I learned he is a Hentz Jumping Spider (Hentzia palmarum), also known as a Common Hentz Jumper. He belongs to the subfamily Dendryphantinae, of the family Salticidae (Jumping Spiders). Isn't he stunning?


References:
http://www.peckhamia.com/salticidae/diagnost/hentzia/palma-gb.htm (click on the photos to see the diagnostic drawings - pretty cool stuff!)
http://bugguide.net/node/view/6792
http://tolweb.org/Hentzia_palmarum/4326 (Tree of Life)
http://www.americanarachnology.org/JoA_free/JoA_v17_n3/JoA_V17_p285.pdf (article on Revision of the Genus Hentzia)
http://www.hiscreation.com/node/960

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