Phidippus
Encyclopedia
Phidippus is a genus in the family Salticidae (jumping spider
s). Some of the largest jumping spiders inhabit this genus, and many species are characterized by their brilliant, iridescent green chelicerae
. Phidippus is distributed almost exclusively in North America
, with the exception of two exported species (Phidippus audax
and Phidippus regius
). As of 2004, there are 60 valid described species in the genus. Species previously described in Phidippus which are found in India
and Bangladesh
do not belong in this genus.
's speech Pro Rege Deiotaro (Speech in Behalf of King Deiotarus): Phidippus was a slave who was physician to King Deiotaros. Literally, the words means "one who spares horses" in Ancient Greek
.
Jumping spider
The jumping spider family contains more than 500 described genera and about 5,000 described species, making it the largest family of spiders with about 13% of all species. Jumping spiders have some of the best vision among invertebrates and use it in courtship, hunting and navigation...
s). Some of the largest jumping spiders inhabit this genus, and many species are characterized by their brilliant, iridescent green chelicerae
Chelicerae
The chelicerae are mouthparts of the Chelicerata, an arthropod subphylum that includes arachnids, Merostomata , and Pycnogonida . Chelicerae are pointed appendages which are used to grasp food, and are found in place of the chewing mandibles most other arthropods have...
. Phidippus is distributed almost exclusively in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, with the exception of two exported species (Phidippus audax
Phidippus audax
Phidippus audax is a common jumping spider of North America. It is commonly referred to as the daring jumping spider, or bold jumping spider. The average size of adults ranges from roughly 13 to 20 mm in length....
and Phidippus regius
Phidippus regius
Phidippus regius is a species of jumping spider. It is the largest jumping spider in eastern North America, with adult males averaging 12mm in length , and females averaging 15mm .Males and females are easily differentiated...
). As of 2004, there are 60 valid described species in the genus. Species previously described in Phidippus which are found in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
do not belong in this genus.
Name
The genus name is likely derived from CiceroCicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
's speech Pro Rege Deiotaro (Speech in Behalf of King Deiotarus): Phidippus was a slave who was physician to King Deiotaros. Literally, the words means "one who spares horses" in Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek
Ancient Greek is the stage of the Greek language in the periods spanning the times c. 9th–6th centuries BC, , c. 5th–4th centuries BC , and the c. 3rd century BC – 6th century AD of ancient Greece and the ancient world; being predated in the 2nd millennium BC by Mycenaean Greek...
.
Accepted species
The genus Phidippus consists of the following 60 species:- Phidippus adonis Edwards, 2004 — MexicoMexicoThe United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
- Phidippus adumbratus GertschWillis J. GertschWillis John Gertsch was an American arachnologist. He classified a number of species, including the Brown recluse spider and the Tooth cave spider....
, 1934 — USA - Phidippus amans Edwards, 2004 — Mexico
- Phidippus albulatus F. O. P-CambridgeFrederick Octavius Pickard-CambridgeFrederick Octavius Pickard-Cambridge was an English arachnologist. He is often confused with his uncle, Octavius Pickard-Cambridge , who was also an arachnologist and from whom F. O. Pickard-Cambridge picked up his enthusiasm for the study of spiders.-Life:F. O. Pickard-Cambridge was born in...
, 1901 — Mexico - Phidippus apacheanus ChamberlinRalph Vary ChamberlinRalph Vary Chamberlin was an American zoologist from Salt Lake City, Utah. He received his PhD from Cornell University in 1904. He was a professor of zoology at Brigham Young University from 1908-1911, and at the University of Utah from 1925-1938....
& Gertsch, 1929 — USA, Mexico, CubaCubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city... - Phidippus ardens Peckham & PeckhamGeorge and Elizabeth PeckhamGeorge Williams Peckham and Elizabeth Maria Gifford Peckham were early American teachers, taxonomists, ethologists, arachnologists, and entomologists, specializing in animal behavior and in the study of jumping spiders and wasps.-Lives and careers:George Peckham was born in Albany,...
, 1901 — USA, Mexico - Phidippus arizonensis (Peckham & Peckham, 1883) — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus asotus Chamberlin & IvieWilton IvieWilton Ivie was an American entomologist, who descriped Arachnida-species. . He was employed by the American Museum of Natural History in New York.Wilton Ivie: B.S., M.S. in biology from University of Utah....
, 1933 — USA, Mexico - Phidippus audaxPhidippus audaxPhidippus audax is a common jumping spider of North America. It is commonly referred to as the daring jumping spider, or bold jumping spider. The average size of adults ranges from roughly 13 to 20 mm in length....
(HentzNicholas Marcellus HentzNicholas Marcellus Hentz was a French American arachnologist. Hentz was born in Versailles, France. He immigrated to the United States in 1816 and became a pioneering zoologist in the field of arachnology....
, 1845) — North AmericaNorth AmericaNorth America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, introduced in Hawai'i, Nicobar IslandsNicobar IslandsThe Nicobar Islands are an archipelagic island chain in the eastern Indian Ocean... - Phidippus aureus Edwards, 2004 — USA
- Phidippus bidentatus F. O. P.-Cambridge, 1901 — USA to Costa RicaCosta RicaCosta Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
- Phidippus boei Edwards, 2004 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus borealis Banks, 1895 — USA, CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, AlaskaAlaskaAlaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait... - Phidippus californicusPhidippus californicusPhidippus californicus is a species of jumping spider. It is found in the southwestern USA Phidippus californicus is a species of jumping spider. It is found in the southwestern USA Phidippus californicus is a species of jumping spider. It is found in the southwestern USA (Arizona, New Mexico,...
Peckham & Peckham, 1901 — North America - Phidippus cardinalisPhidippus cardinalisPhidippus cardinalis is a species of jumping spider. It is commonly called Cardinal jumper. It is one of the species of jumping spiders which are mimics of mutillid wasps in the genus Dasymutilla ; several species of these wasps are similar in size and coloration, and possess a very painful...
(Hentz, 1845) — USA, Mexico - Phidippus carneus Peckham & Peckham, 1896 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus carolinensis Peckham & Peckham, 1909 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus cerberus Edwards, 2004 — Mexico
- Phidippus clarusPhidippus clarusPhidippus clarus is a species of jumping spider found in old fields throughout eastern North America. It often waits upside down near the top of a plant, which may be useful for detecting prey, and then quickly jumps down before the prey can escape...
KeyserlingEugen von KeyserlingEugen von Keyserling was a German arachnologist.He was the author of Die Spinnen Amerikas, and completed Die Arachniden Australiens on behalf of Ludwig Carl Christian Koch.-External links:...
, 1885 — North America - Phidippus comatus Peckham & Peckham, 1901 — North America
- Phidippus concinnus Gertsch, 1934 — USA
- Phidippus cruentus F. O. P.-Cambridge, 1901 — Mexico
- Phidippus cryptus Edwards, 2004 — USA, Canada
- Phidippus dianthus Edwards, 2004 — Mexico
- Phidippus felinus Edwards, 2004 — USA
- Phidippus georgii Peckham & Peckham, 1896 — Mexico to El SalvadorEl SalvadorEl Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
- Phidippus insignarius C. L. Koch, 1846 — USA
- Phidippus johnsoniPhidippus johnsoniThe red-backed jumping spider is one of the largest and most commonly encountered jumping spiders of western North America. It is not to be confused with the unrelated and highly venomous redback spider...
(Peckham & Peckham, 1883) — North America - Phidippus kastoni Edwards, 2004 — USA
- Phidippus lynceus Edwards, 2004 — USA
- Phidippus maddisoni Edwards, 2004 — Mexico
- Phidippus mimicus Edwards, 2004 — Mexico
- Phidippus morpheus Edwards, 2004 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus mystaceusPhidippus mystaceusPhidippus mystaceus is a species of jumping spider that is found in North America. Females grow to about one centimeter in body length.-Name:...
(Hentz, 1846) — USA - Phidippus nikites Chamberlin & Ivie, 1935 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus octopunctatusPhidippus octopunctatusPhidippus octopunctatus is a jumping spider that occurs in the USA and Mexico, mostly in the Great Basin Desert. It is among the largest jumping spiders found in North America, approaching 25 mm in body length...
(Peckham & Peckham, 1883) — USA, Mexico - Phidippus olympus Edwards, 2004 — USA
- Phidippus otiosusPhidippus otiosusPhidippus otiosus is a species of jumping spider that is found in southeastern North America. It is primarily a tree-living species. Females reach a body length of about 16 mm. Its iridescent fangs can range in color from purple to green....
(Hentz, 1846) — USA - Phidippus phoenix Edwards, 2004 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus piusPhidippus piusPhidippus pius is a species of jumping spider that is found in Central and North America.-Name:The species name is derived from the Latin word pius or "pious", meaning dutiful, godly, or holy.-Further reading:...
Scheffer, 1905 — USA to Costa Rica - Phidippus pompatus Edwards, 2004 — Mexico
- Phidippus princeps (Peckham & Peckham, 1883) — USA, Canada
- Phidippus pruinosus Peckham & Peckham, 1909 — USA
- Phidippus pulcherrimus Keyserling, 1885 — USA
- Phidippus purpuratus Keyserling, 1885 — USA, Canada
- Phidippus putnamiPhidippus putnamiPhidippus putnami is a species of jumping spider that is found in North America.-External links:* *...
(Peckham & Peckham, 1883) — USA - Phidippus regiusPhidippus regiusPhidippus regius is a species of jumping spider. It is the largest jumping spider in eastern North America, with adult males averaging 12mm in length , and females averaging 15mm .Males and females are easily differentiated...
C. L. Koch, 1846 (USA, West Indies, Easter IslandEaster IslandEaster Island is a Polynesian island in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian triangle. A special territory of Chile that was annexed in 1888, Easter Island is famous for its 887 extant monumental statues, called moai, created by the early Rapanui people...
— introduced) - Phidippus richmani Edwards, 2004 — USA
- Phidippus texanus Banks, 1906 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus tigris Edwards, 2004 — USA
- Phidippus toro Edwards, 1978 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus tux Pinter, 1970 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus tyrannus Edwards, 2004 — USA, Mexico
- Phidippus tyrrelli Peckham & Peckham, 1901 — North America
- Phidippus ursulus Edwards, 2004 — USA
- Phidippus venus Edwards, 2004 — Mexico
- Phidippus vexans Edwards, 2004 — USA
- Phidippus whitmaniPhidippus whitmaniPhidippus whitmani is a species of jumping spider.-Description:While the male is strikingly red on top, with a black band in the frontal eye region and sometimes with white setae on the forelegs, the female is of a rather inconspicuous brown color...
Peckham & Peckham, 1909 — USA, Canada - Phidippus workmani Peckham & Peckham, 1901 — USA
- Phidippus zethus Edwards, 2004 — Mexico
Misplaced species
In addition to the species above, several species have been misplaced in the genus (according to Edward's revision) but have yet to be transferred to other genera. These include:- Phidippus aeneidens Taczanowski, 1878 — Peru
- Phidippus albocinctus Caporiacco, 1947 — Guyana
- Phidippus bengalensis Tikader, 1977 — India
- Phidippus bhimrakshiti Gajbe, 2004 — India
- Phidippus birabeni Mello-Leitão, 1944 — Argentina
- Phidippus calcuttaensis Biswas, 1984 — India
- Phidippus exlineae Caporiacco, 1955 — Venezuela
- Phidippus guianensis Caporiacco, 1947 — Guyana
- Phidippus hingstoni Mello-Leitão, 1948 — Guyana
- Phidippus khandalaensis Tikader, 1977 — India
- Phidippus majumderi Biswas, 1999 — Bangladesh
- Phidippus punjabensis Tikader, 1974 — India
- Phidippus tenuis Kraus, 1955 — El Salvador
- Phidippus tirapensis Biswas & Biswas, 2006 — India
- Phidippus yashodharae Tikader, 1977 — Andaman Is.
- Phidippus zebrinus Mello-Leitão, 1945 — Argentina
Videos
- David Edwin Hill: Portrait of feeding female Phidippus audax — Video
- David Edwin Hill: Variable female forms of the jumping spider Phidippus clarus — Video
Pictures
- "Bold Jumping Spider" - Phidippus audax
- Awesome Spiders: Photographs of P. arizonensis
- Phidippus clarus diagnostic photographs, male and female specimens
- Phidippus mystaceus photographs, adult male specimen
- Phidippus princeps reference photographs
- Phidippus otiosus adult male specimen
- Catalog of genus Phidippus
- Pictures of Phidippus species (P. adumbratus, P. apacheanus, P. arizonensis, P. asotus, P. audax, P. basalis, P. boei, P. cardinalis, P. carneus, P. clarus, P. comatus,P. cruentus, P. johnsoni, P. mystaceus, P. octopunctatus, P. olympus, P. otlosus, P. phoenix, P. plus, P. princeps, P. pruinosus, P. pulcherrimus, P. purpuratus, P. putnami, P. regius, P. richmani, P. texanus, P. tigris, P. toro, P. tyrelli, P. whitmani and P. workmani.)
- Picture of Phidippus species (free for noncommercial use)