Crab Spiders do not make webs but wander on the ground and amongst plants in search of prey. They are often spotted on flowers where they wait patiently for a nectar- or pollen-feeding insect to choose the unlucky flower to land on. Sometimes a suspiciously immobile bee or butterfly catches your attention first, and closer examination reveals the grisly truth - a crab spider fastened firmly to the neck of the hapless insect.
Crab Spiders do resemble crabs in several ways. Their stout legs are held out to each side and the spider can move backwards, forwards or sideways like a crab. The second pair of legs is often longer and stouter then the other pairs. These stealthy spiders have somewhat flattened broad bodies, furthering their crab-like appearance. Many are brown, and the very common Goldenrod Crab Spider (see separate profile) is either white or yellow to match the flower it is using for camouflage.
Crab spiders can be mistaken for the similar Tree-crab Spiders (Philodromidae). Tree-crab spiders are more often spotted on tree trunks and have more slender bodies than Crab Spiders.
Males are smaller than females with longer legs. Males use silk to restrain the testy females during mating. The female makes a silken egg sac and guards it but dies before the spiderlings hatch.
There are about 30 species of Thomisid crab spiders in Alberta.
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BRENT JOHNER
for serving 9 consecutive years on the society's Board