E. concolor
         L. collurio
         M. striata
         S. torquata
         T. onustus
         M. gibbosus

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Unless otherwise noted, all pictures on this site were taken in Pelion, Greece, shown on the map below.

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View images of the Balkan Green Lizard, one of the largest, commonest and prettiest lizards in the Pelion region.

  Veggie of the Month

Learn about the Salsify, a beautiful plant, with edible and medicinal properties, that is currently blooming in Pelion.

  Cool Destination

Visit Mourtias, one of Pelion's most picturesque beaches on the Aegean coast.

  Exciting Site

Tour the Volos Archaeological Museum, a pretty century-old building, whose exhibits span a historical period of over 10 millennia!

  Month's Wallpaper

Download a fantastic picture of a rickety jetty in Lefokastron, Pelion, taken by Huw Jones.

Loading image. Please wait Heather Spider (Thomisus onustus) :: 2001/08/25 :: Horton :: © A.Papadopoulos Heather Spider (Thomisus onustus) :: 2001/08/25 :: Horton :: © A.Papadopoulos Heather Spider (Thomisus onustus) :: Close-up Shot :: 2001/08/25 :: Horton :: © A.Papadopoulos Heather Spider (Thomisus onustus) :: Face Shot :: 2001/08/25 :: Horton :: © A.Papadopoulos Heather Spider (Thomisus onustus) :: Full View :: 2001/08/25 :: Horton :: © A.Papadopoulos

Heather Spider

Thomisus onustus

This spider may be pink, yellow or white, depending on the color of the flower on which it was found. Individual spiders can slowly change color, to match their surroundings. T. onustus does not spin a web; it typically sits among the pink blooms of heather (hence its common name) and patiently waits for prey, pouncing on it when it arrives.

Like other crab spiders that ambush their prey, the first two pairs of legs are used for grabbing insects and are, therefore, much longer and stronger than the last two.

The female, depicted in the pictures above, has a broad angular abdomen and the  carapace has two horn-like projections near the eyes (this feature is particularly evident in the second and fourth pictures).

Females are up to 6-7mm (1/4"), whereas males are about half that size, ranging between 2.5-3.5mm (1/8"). Males are orange-brown, with blackish legs, and are less variable in color than females.

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Fact Sheet

Food
Insects.

Web
None.

Active
Adults are active from April till around September.

Habitat
Heathers and other flowers in heathland, meadows and edges of cultivation.

Distribution
Europe, N. Africa, Asia, and Japan.


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Taxonomy


Superkingdom: Eukaryota; Kingdom: Metazoa; Phylum: Arthropoda; Subphylum: Chelicerata; Class: Arachnida; Order: Araneae; Suborder: Araneomorphae; Family: Thomisidae; Subfamily: Misumeninae; Genus: Thomisus; Species: onustus.

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