Oxyopidae: Lynx Spiders

More Spider Resources Spider Pictures Types of Spiders

The majority of Lynx Spiders (family Oxyopidae) live in tropical and subtropical areas of the world, however, species in three different genera can be found in the United States.

The are small to medium sized hunting spiders, and like the crab spiders and jumping spiders, their preferred habitat consists of low growing plants and bushes.

Because they share an overlapping habitat with similar looking spiders, proper identification often comes down to having a close up view of any individual species.

Generally lynx spiders can be differentiated by the presence of extra hairy legs and a pointed abdomen. The abdomens of some species are also visibly elongated.

The top picture, a Striped Lynx spider (Oxyopes salticus) highlights the family's characteristic hairy legs. While the picture provides a general view of the eye pattern, the two sets of smaller eyes, situated both beneath and above the two larger facial eyes, do not stand out.

The bottom picture shows a Western Lynx (Oxyopes scalaris) which highlights the pointed abdomen. The Western Lynx varies in color from dark to lights shades of brown.

The thin green bodies of the species in the Genus Peucetia, not pictured here, make these species even easier to identify. They are very common spiders of Southern gardens.

© 2009. Patricia A. Michaels