Jumping spiders constitute the world’s largest spider family (Salticidae). Over three hundred jumping spiders inhabit North America, many in residential areas. As they grow, jumping spiders go through physical phases. One species, including males and females, might have a total of ten different looks during their life times.
The Southeast has more Jumping Spider species and genera that other areas of the United States.
The Translucent Green Jumper (Lyssomanes viridis) pictured at the top of the page, are a Southeast species.
The Slender Ant Mimic grows about one-quarter inch in length and can be found in a few states of the Northeast.
Three Colonus spices live in the United States. Colonus hesprus is a Western and Southwestern species. Males have the brown abdomen.
With the exception of New England, Colonus sylvanus is fairly common East of the Rocky Mountains. The picture shows a female.
Colonus peuperus are also pretty common in the East. The female has a more white body. In the southern end of their range they can be found year round. Their season dwindles as their range moves north.
All five of the Hentzia species are found east of the Rocky Mountains. Hentzia mitrata has no common name. However, it’s one of the species with the wide range. Look for the white legs in the front and the overall light color.
Hentzia grenada have a range limited to Georgia and Florida.
Dimorphic Jumping Spider – East of the Rocky Mountains.
Two different male versions are present. One has a black body. The other looks similar to the picture. white, and black markings. The female resembles the second form with faint V-shaped markings and a paler abdomen.
Paraphidippus aurantius. Note the red stripe around the abdomen. Common in Eastern United States.
Messua-limbata is a very small jumping spider found in South Texas and in Mexico. Note the stripes or borders on the abdomen and thorax.
The presence of a thin abdomen usually represents a good starting point for identifying jumping spiders in the genus Marpissa. Marpissa grata in the picture is one of the least common, with a few sighting in the northern parts of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains.
Pike Slender Jumper (Marpissa pikei is more common east of the Rocky Mountains.
The name Thin-spined jumping spider defines its basic physical appearance. They can often be found resting on leaves and bushes from late spring through early fall in most areas east of the Rocky Mountains.
Wall Jumping Spiders
Wall jumping spiders (genus Menemerus) consists of over sixty different species distributed mostly around the tropical and subtropical areas of the world.
The Gray Wall Jumper (Menemerus bivittatus), one of two native Menemerus species, lives near southern residential areas, principally Florida, Texas and California.
Another wall jumper, the Zebra Jumper (Salticus scenicus), lives around most North American residential areas. Very small in size, the dark and light stripes on the abdomen account for the name. Look for them on the walls of the house. They also make their home around structures in parks.
Sixty different Phidippus jumping spiders have been identified in the United States. That probably makes them the most common type of jumping spiders to inhabit residential areas.
Identification often starts with noting the green chelicerae (jaws) and body color. Red bodied Phidippus species also inhabit most areas of North America. Identification starts by noting the placement of the red on the body along with the patterns on the body that might be present.
The first picture under this heading, for example, is of the Cardinal Jumper. The red on the head and the body are the best field identification clues. Mature females look similar with a prominent white dots and thin black stripes on the abdomen. They are one of a handful of red bodied Phidippus in the Southeast and a bit of the Midwest.
Phidippus clarus also live most residential areas of the United States. The body has a white stripe across the top, patches of red on the side and some white dots. The head is a solid black color.
Johnson’s Jumper (Phidippus johnsoni) is the dominant Red bodied jumper in the West. Females like the one in the picture have a black stripe down the abdomen, surrounded by red.
Males have an all red abdomen and black head. They are also very hardy spiders that can be found from about March through October in the northern most range. In the south they can be found year round.
Phidippus adumbras is a California species. The picture shows a female with the small pattern in the center of the red abdomen.
Male adumbras have an all red abdomen.
The Apache jumping spider dominates the range East of the Rockies and West of the Mississippi River. The head and the body have red spots. The body also has a black patch at the bottom.
Ranges for other common red-bodied Phidippus get more limited. For example, contrary to the name, the Carolina Jumping spider (Phidippus carolinensis) has a range limited to Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado and New Mexico. T
The Arizona jumping spider is range limited to Texas, Colorado and New Mexico. They are primarily a woodland species.
Range for the Texas Jumping spider shrinks even more, to Texas and Oklahoma.
Phidippus pius get scattered around the Midwest and East.
Females, like the one in the picture, generally have light colored bodies.
Male Phidippus pius
Phidippus princeps, sometimes called the grayish jumper, is a common eastern species. Bugguide lists ten different versions of the species as the males and females move to maturity. This is the mature male.
Bold Jumping spiders are probably the most widespread jumping spider species in the United States. In many residential areas they are year round residents that move indoors during the colder weather.
Phidippus mystaceus are an interesting Southeast species with a variety of looks. Some have orange to red legs, perhaps some shade of red on the body. Otherwise, they are not really one of the red bodied Phidippus. The light marks on the top of the head are a good identification clue.
Regal jumping spiders grow to over three-quarters of an inch in length, making them one of the largest jumping spiders. They are a Southeast species with a few different looks. The picture shows a typical female. Males have an orange-red body coloration.
Phiddippus asotus provides an additional demonstration of Phidippus without red in the body. It has no common name and can be found in the Southwest from February through November.
Last but not least, the range for Phidippus borealis is limited to the northern border areas.
Jumping spider pictures addresses some of the more complex identification issues, namely the small dark bodies jumping spiders. The Bronze jumping spider in the video kicks off this section of jumping spiders. They are a fairly common species in most areas of the United States, Males are mostly brown spider with white striping.
Female Bronze Jumping Spider
Hoy’s jumping spiders look very similar, but they come from a different genera. E. hoyi is the eastern species (in the northern states), and E. proszynskii is the western species.
Male Hoys Jumping Spider
Female Hoys Jumping Spider
White-cheeked Jumping spiders are common in the East. Males have the dark body.
Female White-cheeked Jumping Spider
Twenty six different Pelegrina jumping spiders have been identified in the United States. Along the the Common White-cheeked jumping spider, the Peppered Jumping spider is one of the most common jumping spiders in the east.
Males have dark bodies with the picture highlighting the white spots peppered all over it, including the legs.
The Pantriopical jumping spider can be considered a common house spider of the Southeast, from Florida to Texas. They live around residential areas and build their egg sacs on structures, including houses, porches and sheds. There are only a few documented instances of their living in more wild environments. Like the other species presented, the male has a dark body. The white stripe pattern on the body provides additional identification help.
Here’s the female.
Size can help with these similar looking brown jumpers. The Buttonhook Leaf Beetle Jumping spider has a nick name much longer than it’s size. In fact, the picture shows a male that might be one-sixteenth of an inch. Females can grow to a bit less than one-quarter of an inch in length. While they populate many areas of the West, the diminutive size might pose a challenge finding one.
Including the Hammerjawed Jumping spider (Zygoballus rufipes) in the look alike category makes it an A-Z jumping spider group. They are another very common eastern species, so it’s easy to see how beginning enthusiasts might get confused with identification.
Here’s the Female.
With around one hundred species, the Habronattus genus ranks as the largest of the jumping spider genera. Spider enthusiasts in the West can easily identify Habronattus-amicus by the hairy abdomen and colorful legs. Their often dark bodies with different patterns means they also can look similar to the many dark bodied male jumping spiders listed here.
The name Habronattus borealis suggests the spider is found in the boreal forests of North America. While partially true, most of the US population has been identified in the Northeast states.
Florida hosts Habronattus brunneus.
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Here’s the female Habronattus pyrrithrix, a Southwest species.
Platycryptus are a genera of dull looking jumping spiders. They have brown to grayish bodies. There’s also diamond shaped marks along the middle of the elongate abdomen.
They can be found on both coasts although the body provides good camouflage. This picture shows Platycryptus californicus, the dominant Western species.
The Tan jumping spider
The abdominal pattern usually serves as the best field identification clue for the Twin-flagged jumping spider, a Southern species.