50 More Urban Species #43: Phidippus audax; Urban Nature Pictures 10/13

[urbpan]

Phidippus audax

In the course of doing the 365 Urban Species Project, there were a few organisms that I had in mind to blog about, that I didn't encounter, or photograph well enough. High among these Phiddippus audax, my favorite arachnid. I don't pick favorites very often, but this is a very charismatic spider. Jumping spiders in general, with their big forward-facing eyes and little forelimb gestures, are pretty endearing. They are some of the only spiders that really seem to acknowledge humans, turning to face us when approached, putting up those front legs in a threatening manner, and then jumping away (or sometimes toward us) at the last moment.

Phidippus audax also has those great big green fangs and three white dots that look like a face staring up from the abdomen. Regional variants have orange spots, and there are some related species that look similar, but P. audax is the most commonly encountered throughout North America. It also seems to have a particular preference for man-made habitat, or perhaps the kinds of insect prey that man-made habitat attracts. I used to call it "the window-sill spider" because I found it on an office window ledge catching flies so often. The individual on my icon had claimed my parked car as territory, and the one in these photos had set up shop inside a yellow jacket trap. This spider is sometimes given the common names "daring jumping spider" or "bold jumping spider" but I find those lacking and prefer the scientific name in this case.



(The consensus seems to be that Audax is pronounced Ow-dux. A spider guy on youtube said "Oddux," and I tend to say Oh-dacks, which is probably the least correct of all.)

Comments

[plantmom.livejournal.com]

I had one of those in my truck recently. I couldn't seem to coax it out, so I drove around much of the day thinking about it. Its legs were a bit lighter-colored than any of your pictures, but that's the guy. Cute and funny.

[zipotle.livejournal.com]

I LOVE those! I always figured it was pronounced kind of like audacious, (au-dax, or aw-dax if I'm having a Southern accent day) which is what I thought they were named for. It just seemed fitting.

I don't think this is the same species but I liked it-it was about a half inch long. I found it on a hike. It's pretty!

[badnoodles.livejournal.com]

It's related - I think that's Phidippus johnsoni.

[zipotle.livejournal.com]

Neat, I always wondered. Thanks!

[shellynoir.livejournal.com]

What was the movie where Wesley Snipes had orange hair? It didn't do well at the box office.

[wirrrn.livejournal.com]

Awww, so cute! A lot of chronic arachnophobes have no problem with Salticidsm because of the fuzzy chops and big eyes triggering our inate "baby mammal cute!" reflex...

btw- "Awe- ducks" *g*

[badnoodles.livejournal.com]

I've always heard it pronounced "aw-dax". Like "audacious", with an "x" in place of the "cious".

[lookingaround17.livejournal.com]

Oh, visually freaky! I saw that as the side view of a standing human female torso, hefty figure, in a blue shirt, with the therefore-alarmingly-big spider clinging to the left side--you know?

"Top of the world, Ma!"

[chris tucker (from livejournal.com)]

Found this bold adventurer (http://img.skitch.com/20101016-e93t9tnyh6am2t63n9jq9jnfbu.jpg) atop my trackball a year or so ago.

After the I took the photo, it was livetrapped and released elsewhere in the apartment building.

[shellynoir.livejournal.com]

There were a bunch of these living on my window sill when I was a child. They always stuck to "their" part of the room and never wandered, except for one who dropped from the ceiling onto the top of the book I was reading once. They liked to chase the ends of toothpicks.

[wraithfodder.livejournal.com]

He's a cute little fellow. Haven't seen him in my neck of the woods, unfortunately.

[eighthman.livejournal.com]

Love jumping spiders. I sometimes have small ones in the house (different species?), and leave them alone. I have -- had? -- video of my "playing" with one on my computer monitor. It I chased my cursor, and then I'd chase it. Seen bigger ones outside, like your photos. About three weeks ago I was trying to shoo one of these guys outside so I could close the screen door and not squish him. I moved, and he turned toward me and looked just like the famed Dramatic Squirrel.

[bdot.livejournal.com]

i am trying to identify a spider that was found here in CA... can you help? there are pictures posted in my journal here.
thank you!

Phierce Phighting Phemale Phidippus

[ndozo.livejournal.com]

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/06/100607101658.htm

"Jumping spider females fight by different rules than males. For females size and skill aren't everything -- what matters is how badly they want to win."