brilliant jumping spider

(Phidippus clarus)

Conservation Status
IUCN Red List

not listed

NatureServe

NNR - Unranked

SNR - Unranked

Minnesota

not listed

 
brilliant jumping spider
Photo by Alfredo Colon
 
Description

Brilliant jumping spider occurs across North America from coast to coast. It is common east of the Great Plains, less common on the West Coast, and absent form the desert southwest. It is very common in Minnesota. A study in 1997 surveyed jumping spiders in 30 locations around Minnesota. The author collected 572 jumping spiders representing 15 species. Brilliant jumping spider was by far the most common, with 299 specimens (52%) collected.

Brilliant jumping spider is found from July to September in moderately moist fields on grasses and perennial plants. It is a small to medium-sized spider (order Araneae) but a relatively large jumping spider (family Salticidae).

The male is mostly black and 3 16 to ¼ long not including the legs. The front part of the body (cephalothorax) is robust. The plate covering the cephalothorax (carapace) is high, longer than wide, black, shiny, and iridescent. The abdomen is black with a white band around the front; a broad; a reddish-orange longitudinal stripe on each side; and four pairs of small white spots on or bordering a pair of thin, black, longitudinal stripes near the middle. The legs are short, hairy, and black, with pale bands near the end of each segment.

The female is larger, 5 16 to ½ long and has bronze-red to gold scales on the carapace. The abdomen is variable in color. The light form female is varying shades of gray, tan, brown, and orange. The dark form female is colored similar to the male. The colors may be an adaptation to the local environment. The light form may help to camouflage the spider from birds, while the dark form with bright reddish-orange may be warning coloration to predators that avoid wasps. The legs on the light form are pale with dark bands near the end of each segment.

There are four pairs of eyes arranged in what appears to be three rows. The first row of four eyes is recurved. The middle and forward-most pair of these is by far the largest of all of the eyes and can be moved. The second row of two eyes is closer to the first row than it is to the third row, which is set far back on the head. The second and third rows form a square. The jaws (chelicerae) are small. The basal parts of the chelicerae are iridescent green or blue. There are two sensory appendages (palps) associated with the mouthparts. Each palp has a conspicuous white stripe on top (dorsally).

 

Size

Female Body Length: 5 16 to ½

Male Body Length: 3 16 to ¼

Legspan: 5 16 to ½

 

Web

None

 

Similar Species

 
Habitat

A wide range of habitats, especially old fields and weedy areas in open woodlands

Biology

Season

June to September

 

Behavior

Brilliant jumping spider hunts during the day by sneaking up and pouncing on its prey. It releases silk while jumping as a drag line to prevent falling. It does not hunt at night.

It will bite if molested but is usually too quick and wary to be caught. It can jump 10 to 50 times its body length.

 

Life Cycle

The female is a paragon of parental perseverance. In the fall she creates a large white egg sac at the top of a tall grass or herbaceous plant and drops eggs into the sac. She prevents the eggs from drying out by repeatedly adding silk to cover the egg mass. She stays with the egg sac until the young disperse in about a month. During this time she does not feed and usually dies from starvation a few days later.

The eggs are highly parasitized by flies, mantis-flies, and wasps due to the exposed location of the egg sac.

Early stage spiderlings overwinter. Adults reach maturity in mid-summer

 

Food

Insects and other spiders

Distribution

Distribution Map

 

Sources

24, 29, 30, 82, 83.

4/8/2025    
     

Occurrence

Common and widespread. Very common in Minnesota

Taxonomy

Class

Arachnida (arachnids)

Order

Araneae (spiders)

Suborder

Araneomorphae (typical spiders)

Infraorder

Entelegynae

Superfamily

Salticoidea

Family

Salticidae (jumping spiders)

Subfamily

Salticinae (typical jumping spiders)

Tribe

Dendryphantini

Subtribe

Dendryphantina

Genus

Phidippus

   

Subordinate Taxa

 

   

Synonyms

Attus flavus

Phidippus bilineatus

Phidippus clarconensis

Phidippus homarinus

Phidippus insolens

Phidippus minutus

Phidippus multiformis

Phidippus princeps

Phidippus rimator

Phidippus testaceus

   

Common Names

brilliant jumper

brilliant jumping spider

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glossary

Carapace

The hard, upper (dorsal), shell-like covering (exoskeleton) of the body or at least the thorax of many arthropods and of turtles and tortoises. On crustaceans, it covers the cephalothorax. On spiders, the top of the cephalothorax made from a series of fused sclerites.

 

Cephalothorax

The front part of a spider’s body, composed of the head region and the thoracic area fused together. Eyes, legs, and antennae are attached to this part.

 

Chelicerae

The pair of stout mouthparts, corresponding to jaws, in arachnids and other arthropods in the subphylum Chelicerata.

 

Palp

Short for pedipalp. A segmented, finger-like process of an arthropod; one is attached to each maxilla and two are attached to the labium. They function as sense organs in spiders and weapons in scorpions.

 

 

Visitor Photos
 

Share your photo of this arachnid.

 

This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Attach one or more photos and, if you like, a caption.

Alfredo Colon

brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     

Female

brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     

Male

brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider

Babette Kis

     

Phidippus clarus

I've been at Barnes Prairie most days for the last months, and have seen some interesting behavior in Phidippus clarus during this time.

Phidippus clarus, brilliant jumping spider, with a smaller spider prey of the same species. The photo was taken at Barnes Prairie, Racine Co., WI on the morning of July 17, 2023.

 

brilliant jumping spider

     

Phidippus clarus pictures

I know you probably have plenty of these, but I'm attaching a few photos of Phidippus clarus, brilliant or prairie jumper, found on Barnes Prairie, Racine Co. WI. Photos were taken in June 2023.

brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     

Phidippus clarus brilliant or prairie jumping spider

brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider

Joel Dunn

brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
     
brilliant jumping spider   brilliant jumping spider
MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos
   

 

   

 

 

Camera

Slideshows

 

 
 

 

slideshow

Visitor Videos
 

Share your video of this arachnid.

 

This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Attach a video, a YouTube link, or a cloud storage link.

 

 

 
 
Other Videos

Phidippus clarus - Jumping Spider
Dick Walton

About

Published on Nov 25, 2010

male and female Phidippus clarus jumping spider with female in web structure; cannibalism

Jumping Spider-Female Phidippus Clarus
Torn80cj

About

Published on Nov 8, 2014

I finally found a phidippus clarus jumping spider. There are several color and pattern variations of this species, I was so glad to find out that we have the red and orange variations around the area I live. I hope to find a male in the near future.

 

Camcorder

Visitor Sightings
 

Report a sighting of this arachnid.

 

This button not working for you?
Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Be sure to include a location.

 

 

Babette Kis
7/17/2023

Location: Barnes Prairie, Racine Co., WI

I've been at Barnes Prairie most days for the last months, and have seen some interesting behavior in Phidippus clarus during this time.

Phidippus clarus, brilliant jumping spider, with a smaller spider prey of the same species. The photo was taken at Barnes Prairie, Racine Co., WI on the morning of July 17, 2023.

brilliant jumping spider
Babette Kis
June 2023

Location: Barnes Prairie, Racine Co., WI

I know you probably have plenty of these, but I'm attaching a few photos of Phidippus clarus, brilliant or prairie jumper, found on Barnes Prairie, Racine Co. WI. Photos were taken in June 2023.

brilliant jumping spider

Alfredo Colon
8/30/2022

Location: Albany, NY

brilliant jumping spider
Babette Kis
6/27/2022

Location: Barnes Prairie, Racine Co., WI

brilliant jumping spider
Babette Kis
6/26/2022

Location: Barnes Prairie, Racine Co., WI

brilliant jumping spider
Babette Kis
7/2/2021

Location: Barnes Prairie, Racine Co., WI

brilliant jumping spider
Alfredo Colon
6/8/2021

Location: Woodbury, Minnesota

brilliant jumping spider

Alfredo Colon
6/1/2021

Location: Woodbury, Minnesota

brilliant jumping spider

Alfredo Colon
8/27/2018

Location: Woodbury, Minnesota

brilliant jumping spider

Alfredo Colon
6/10/2018

Location: Woodbury, Minnesota

brilliant jumping spider

MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings

 

 

 

Binoculars

 

Created: 11/21/2018

Last Updated:

© MinnesotaSeasons.com. All rights reserved.

About Us

Privacy Policy

Contact Us