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Peucetia viridans
Green Lynx Spider
Florida native
The green lynx spider pictured sitting among the blooms of a dogfennel plant was grabbing love bugs. There are also photos of a female tending her egg nest.
Peucetia viridans is found from Florida to Maryland and west to California. Only one other species of this genus occurs in North America, P. longipalpis, which ranges throughout the southwestern states from California to Texas and south to Venezuela.
These spiders are quite distinctive with their bright green bodies and legs with long black spines. The legs are paler than the body, sometimes appearing yellow, with black spots and other red and or black markings. The body has white and redish-brown markings. The pattern on the abdomen appears fairly consistent, however the red markings on the cephalothorax seem to vary greatly between individuals. Lynx spiders can vary their color to match the background - note the brown abdomen of the female on the nest.
Peucetia viridans is a member of the Oxyopidae - Lynx spiders family.
For more information on this species, visit the following link:
University of Florida IFAS Featured Creatures page for this species
Date record last modified: Sep 14, 2009
