Habronattus Jumpers

It's times like this I wish I could afford a macro lens, because the jumping spiders I found today are absolutely stunning! "Habro" means pretty and graceful in Greek--a fitting name for these jumpers, scientifically known as Habronattus coecatus (subfamily Pelleninae). I first photographed a female on the cross-ties in the backyard. Then, lo and behold, a male appears farther down!

The male has some striking features: for instance, the red band under the eyes, black front legs with some brownish-gray mottling, and a green translucence or iridescence on leg III. The carapace is almost all black, and the abdomen has an easily recognizable pattern of white patches on black. The whole spider is only about 5 mm long.

On the lantern...

He didn't like it when I picked the lantern up!

The female is tan/cream-colored, with a short white band under the eyes, a black chevron on the carapace, and a white patch on the lower abdomen.

Preparing for a jump...

And up she goes!

References:
http://bugguide.net/node/view/6776 (Habronattus)
http://bugguide.net/node/view/65161 (H. coecatus)
http://tolweb.org/Habronattus_coecatus/3949 (Tree of Life)
http://salticidae.org/salticid/diagnost/habnatt/coecatus.htm (diagnostic drawings & distribution)
http://tolweb.org/accessory/Movies_of_Jumping_Spider_Courtship?acc_id=64 (movies of courtship)
http://www.bio.sdsu.edu/pub/spiders/CaHabro.html (Habronattus jumpers of CA & Baja)