A Saltie Lifer

Habronattus decorus

One of the little boys presented the class with a jumping spider. For some reason, they had all quickly, perhaps instantaneously, retained information on the jumping spiders. Perhaps it is because of their tiny flea-size, or their jumping about like fleas, or their comical, endearing faces. But the boys spot them quickly and have learned how to safely capture and hold them.  In these photos, the spider is on the student's hand.

male

I have never documented this species before, making him a lifer for me. The species is common, though. Nobody in Vermont had reported finding them at bugguide.net, so I did. Many Vermonters have documented them at iNaturalist, though.

They are affectionately called salties because jumping spiders are in the Family Salticidae. H. decorus is everywhere from Nova Scotia to Florida and west to British Columbia and Oregon. They don't show up in dry places like deserts or in the dry parts of the west. 

His ruby-colored abdomen tells us he's male.

There isn't much information to be found on the internet about this species. But there is a marvelous one and a half minute video made by Dick Walton here. I really urge you to watch it. There is a female H. decorus in the video, also. This spider has no common name.

_/\_/\_