Jumping Spider

The jumping spider is from the family Salticidae, in the order Araneae, and in the class Arachnida. The name jumping spider really refers to almost any group of hunting spiders that can jump or leap anywhere from 10 to 40 times their own body length.

A close-up view of a jumping spider in midair.Depending on the specie, the spider will either jump or walk. There are around 4,000 described species for the jumping spider alone, making it the largest of all other spider species. More than 300 of those species are found in the United States, and about 75 species are found in Europe.

The jumping spider averages about 2 cm in length; the female spider is typically larger than the male. The jumping spider is also well known for its appearance; they are easily spotted. Jumping spiders generally are brightly colored, have very outstanding patterns, and are also hairy and sometimes stocky.

Altogether, this spider has four pairs of eyes, two of which give it an extremely sharp vision that allows it to see better than almost any animal the same size. All of the jumping spider’s eyes allow it to have 360-degree eyesight. On top of that, the jumping spider also can turn its breast around 45 degrees.

Jumping Spiders found in..

The jumping spider is typically found in tropical regions. The tropical regions they are found in are very different, from the rainforest to the Himalayas. The jumping spider can be found anywhere in these climates. If it’s day, the spider can be found on the ground, rocks, grass, or trees. At night or if it rains, the jumping spider will hide under rocks or a small web.

Because of the jumping spider’s good eyesight, their prey can be noticed anywhere from 30 to 40 cm away. At this distance, the jumping spider scans their prey; their eyesight is similar to that of a zoom lens on a camera.

The jumping spider will move closer when the prey is registered as eatable. The jumping spider even catches prey much bigger than its own size. The jumping spider does not use webs to catch its prey, but they attach a line of silk to its prey in case they fall. When the jumping spider is near their prey, they jump or pounce on it.

Jumping Spider Bite

The jumping spider is often mistaken for dangerous, but they are not. The jumping spider is not poisonous to humans. Like a wolf spider, the jumping spider typically does not attack humans unless they feel threatened or in danger.

A jumping spider bite may be hazardous if the person bitten is allergic to spider venom. Because of that, it is extremely important to consult medical attention when bitten by a spider, especially if the spider is unidentified.

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  1. Keisha says:

    My Daughter Has A Purplish Bump-Like Sore On Her Finger And A Greenish-Yellow Like Pus Is Slowly Leaking Out. I’m Not Sure If Its A Spider Bite Or A Finger Infection. But Today We Saw A Brownish Like Spider In Her Room And It Moved Quickly. We Killed The Spider But I’m Not Sure If That’s What Bit Her Or Not. The Finger Is Very Sensitive And Turning Colors And There Aren’t Any Fang Marks. I Live In Jeanerette, Louisiana But I’m Not Familiar With The Spiders Down Here.

  2. megan says:

    I Love this site! I read a lot of comments from this post, but not all. So funny, my favorite was… “They DO bite, and it was very itchy, and large, about the size of a pencil eraser”

    ~Long live the creatures of this planet, and I hope for peoples fear to vanish. ~

  3. steve holka says:

    jumping spider (a.k.a. spider bro) make great friends, and are fun to handle. they are the friendliest spider. whenever i find one i like to bring it home and let it loose in my home. before bed i usually place a few near my bed to keep the bad bugs at bay. more than a few times now i have awoken from my slumber to find a spider bro on my pillow just hangin out, i laugh and fall back into slumber safe and sound, thanks to my spider bro’s.

  4. ashley says:

    i actually got bit on the butt in my sleep one night i tell ya it hurts it turned black and blue and hard and very huge it i couldn’t even sit down. it left a scar first i thought it was a jumping spider but i did some research and it was a BROWN WIDOW THAT BIT ME!

  5. James says:

    Jumpers will easily kill more dangerous spiders( to humans) with little issue. And I have been bitten by a jumper before, those bites in those pics look like something else, perhaps the real culprit is what the jumpers are preying on, not the spiders themselves. Harvestmen are carrion eaters, so they don’t kill other spiders, and true daddylongleg spiders only kill other web builders, not hunters like Wolf and Jumpers. Also, a jumping spider will NOT start “chewing on your leg”. If one jumps on you randomly its to get a better vantage point to hunt, or its just curious. You really have to try to piss one off to get it to bite, they’ll normally run away if threatened, instead of trying to fight a losing battle with something 1000x their size.

  6. shane jones says:

    I have never personally had any problems with any spiders. I know how to identify the dangerous ones and the ones that are not, I simply move outside. And if everyone would calm down a bit, you would learn that there is room for everyone and everything on Earth. If they are poisonous, kill them. If not, leave em alone. It’s as simple as that.

  7. G.W. Morrow says:

    I am a major in entomology with a minor in psychology with the University of San Diego,

    Jumping Spiders, are non lethal in any way shape or form to full grown humans, any person here who believes their children are allergic to the spiders are dead wrong, Children have a lower immune system than adults, that’s why if bitten, the bacteria, not the venom, causes a severe reaction.

    Jumping Spiders are harmless, I spend most of my time playing with dozens of them, It’s an interesting site when you have some 7 dozen, black fuzzy jumpers on your hand. They’re hunting spiders, they’re not deadly to Humans, in fact if you have an increased amount of these little guys in your home, then it’s probably that you have some other kind of nasty little bug living in your house, like roaches, or even other spiders.

    As a note, 75% of spiders which build webs, are venomous, These are the ones you need to look out for, Black Widows, Recluse, and Hobos.

    Most spiders you encounter have non-lethal venom in allot of cases, it’s just your head playing to your inner fear of being injected with venom by some forlorn movie monster you saw as a kid. As stated by a previous comment, most spiders won’t bite humans unless they feel mortally threatened. The fact of the matter is they would rather keep their venom for food, their venom is only strong enough to kill smaller organisms, ie, roaches, crickets, hoppers, so don’t feel threatened, and while it’s your decision to kill the little guys, think about this in the long run, the more jumpers, or orb weavers, or wolf spiders you have running around your house, the less likely you are gonna run into the nastier disease carrying insects like roaches, or assassin beetles.

    I live with about 200 different species of spiders in my basement, each one contained in a glass terrarium for my studies, this includes some of the rarer most venomous spiders, Funnel Webs, Red Backs, and Stone Spiders, these are ones you will not encounter here in the US, but they’re deadly, and each one of these makes a web, however, there’s also other spiders there too, most of which are non-venomous, these are what the world is mostly filled with. only about 8 species in the world are venomous.

    So now you’ve learned something. I hope you use this knowledge to better yourselves instead of making fools of yourselves by claiming you’re the rare 1 out of 6,000,000 case that is allergic to a spider which can’t even get venom through your epidermis.

  8. rant says:

    People complaining about the horrors of these jumping spiders have never spent a day in their own backyard. There are much, much more dangerous spiders, though this is no spider currently on this earth that is out to get you, lest you bother them.

    As for jumpers, they’re possibly one of the friendliest and docile spiders, doing nothing but being beneficial to us. As for bites, they will hurt, but have no lasting effects. However, if you manage to get a jumper to bite you, you’re doing something horribly wrong, not even the most territorial subspecies will bite unless forced between a rock and a hard place.

    I keep several jumping spiders as pets for over a year, which includes feeding and handling and only once have I been bitten for sticking my finger too far in her nest.

    There is never an excuse to kill any living thing just because it’s scary. We’re thousands upon thousands the size of them, and in most cases, are the ones to do far worse things to them as they do to us.

  9. John says:

    Folks like Geri I suppose form the base of groups like PETA; convinced that we humans have no real right to be here, and heaven forbid that we should harm the palpi of any venomous spider’s head. No right to take any animal’s life? How about those who eat meat? How about those of us like myself who eat fish? I have a commercial shellfishing license. I guess that makes me a mass murderer. How about animals which kill other animals, for food or (like some cats) for fun? Sure-when possible, I capture spiders and place them outdoors, where hopefully they’ll help reduce the population of nuisance insects. however, in my ever so humble opinion, only a moron would refuse to kill a brown recluse, black widow or hobo spider found in the home-unless, of course, that individual enjoys extreme pain, tissue necrosis, nausea, and possible more serious complications, or enjoys inflicting same on his/her kids.

  10. Biliegh says:

    Here is a Picture of the Bites
    Spider Bites
    I keep bandages over them cause I was scratching without thinking… They still Itch :p So I Circled the bites as not to get confused about the bandage marks :)

  11. Biliegh says:

    I was looking up a certain Spider to determine what it is and found this. I kill Spiders and have no problems doing it. A couple of days ago I woke up itching like Mad Crazy!!! I have three spider bites at the top of my leg close to my hip area. One is the size of a quarter and the other two are the size of a nickle (the redness around the bite). In my life time these would be the 4th time I have been bitten (counting the three as one). One unidentified, two Brown Recluse and these I am safely assuming are the Jumpers. They are ALL OVER in my house. I have some small brown ones but they stay in their areas, the jumpers go everywhere in here. Anyways, I just killed another one and noticed the red on its back, not the typical white I always see. I have a horrible headache, stiff neck, no fever and very tired. Other than that I am fine. So I wanted to make sure! Then I see all the comments about killing spiders.

    I had a fear of them so bad I would scream, panic, then flee. Then I moved to a different city and area to where wolf spiders would come into the house, I would see up to 18 a day. So I don’t scream, panic or flee. I do still get excited in my gut and I will kill them. They DO Bite and frankly I do not want to wake up to more bites on my body or on my kids because the stupid things feel threatened cause they walked or dropped onto MY bed! I live out in the country, and I mean in the country! So my only option is to kill them as I see them. I leave the Brown ones alone cause they don’t wander but the Jumpers are Toast and I have no problems with that what so ever :)

  12. yoga mom says:

    My daughter has spider senses. She knows and finds a spider in the room even if it cant be seen. Today we came to this sight to find out what we found and it was a jumping spider. We don’t kill any creatures on this planet, so we put him outside. We also found out from your sight she has been bitten a few times by that spider, HENCE the spider SENSE!!! But to all you bug killers, no one has the right to take a life just because they are bigger! We would all be dead and THE ROCK, would be king of the world, if that was the case, along with Godzilla and King Kong. Respect life, its precious, no matter how small. I found this site very entertaining.

  13. Kayleigh says:

    These spiders DO bite. Just because most of you people haven’t been bitten by one personally, does NOT mean that they DON’T, because they DO. I was sitting on my couch yesterday, and one had been chomping on my foot, once I notice, it jumped at me onto my arm, where I quickly brushed t away & haven’t a clue where it went.

    They are EVERYWHERE where I live, in the house & outside of it. I live in Lemoore, CA, far out into the country on military base & we are run amok with jumpers & black widows. I called pest control today, & they’re coming tomorrow, which isn’t soon enough for me. I am deathly afraid of spiders & have high anxiety about them. The daddy long legs, I leave alone. They have taken over my back porch, but I leave them because they kill other spiders. They aren’t doing a very good job of it lately.

    So with that being confirmed that they do indeed bite, it would be helpful to future people if you would stop telling them that they don’t, because they most certainly DO.

    The bite is severely itchy, and was painful. After sleeping & waking, it’s not so painful, but still very itchy. It is a very large area, about the size of a pencil eraser. Other than that, nothing serious has come of it, I haven’t even noticed any headaches or fever – yet. I doubt either will come up though.

    Thanks.

  14. Monihi says:

    I looked up on Google to see if a spider than ran on top of me was poisonous and I’m glad it wasn’t but, I also have no problem killings spiders. 1 there are billions more of that same species,2 if I worried about any life form I killed then I couldn’t go outside or move because I would kill a bacteria if I washed my hands or I would pick a flower and kill it so I don’t really care. 3 I don’t care if there innocent and have a family a little spider babies that will be cannibalistic and kill them anyways. There is nothing wrong with killing bugs god made billions more to replace them.

  15. Nora says:

    Sorry to post again, but having taken a breath I realized I have to say I was not trying to knock this site. I really was not, I think it’s a good article, this. =) My point was more that if you want or need to learn about something, either call Poison Control, go to an ER, ask your Doctor, or look up a scientifically valid resource or encyclopedia article on the subject – depending on how fast you need the answer.

    Also, for those who are finding spider infestations in their houses – for that many to be living indoors and not in a wild habitat, they MUST be living off of something. Especially Jumping Spiders, as they do not make webs to catch bugs. There has to be a food source. In other words, you most likely have a bigger, more worrisome problem on your hands than you realize if you have that many Spiders in your home.

    You will not get rid of the spiders until you get rid of their food. They will keep coming back to their food. Get a good exterminator to look around and inspect the walls and structure of your home. Much as I hate to say it, you will have to kill all the bugs, not just the spiders, to stop the problem.

    Lastly, a really great way to get rid of bugs in your garden and lawn, that harm your plants and attract a lot of spiders, is to use BioControls. Most of these insects spend part of their life in the soil, so get some Parasitic Nematodes. They cannot harm Humans, do not bother beneficial worms and some other beneficial bugs, and will kill pretty much everything else. No need for fumigation, or chemicals which can harm Children, Elderly people, Pets and the environment.

    If there is little food for them, you won’t have many spiders at all.

  16. Nora says:

    I call Shenanigans to anyone, such as Jennifer below, who claims to be “allergic” to a Jumping Spider Bite. Complete and simple Bovine Manure!

    For what it’s worth (not much on the Internets, I know) I am a student of Arachnology getting my Masters. I am also VERY allergic to all Bees, Wasps, Hornets, Fire Ants and Jellyfish. In other words, I know from whence I speak here.

    There are THREE (3) Families of spiders in the USA that have potentially harmful Venom:
    Loxosceles, the Brown Recluses
    Latrodectus, the Widows
    Tegenaria, the Hobos

    And the first in that short list is now arguable since there’s now an effective treatment.

    Notice, there is no mention of Family Salticidae. This is because there has never been a medically *valid* case of Anaphylaxis or another, less dangerous, allergic reaction to a Jumping Spider bite. There have been MANY papers and studies on all kinds of Spider Venom. While what is found in the Venom varies from species to species in the organic compounds and peptides, as far as Salticidae is concerned, it CANNOT harm Humans. In fact, not many of the Jumping Spiders in the USA have fangs big enough to pierce Human skin in order to envenomate you to begin with.

    Now, on the other hand, a case of severe Panic Attack and Hyperventilation can often look a LOT like an Anaphylactic reaction. My guess is that is what people who think they are having an allergic reaction to a bite from a Salticid are actually experiencing. If you would like to prove me wrong, go try and squish a P Audax (they can deliver a good bite if threatened enough), then go to a Hospital and have the Doctors DOCUMENT the reaction as an honest Anaphylactic Reaction. Then submit that to leading Arachnologists in the country. I’m certain they will be absolutely fascinated and will compete to write up a study about it, since after all out learning and knowledge about this Family there has never been any proof of, and been a lot of proof against, the idea that Humans can be Allergic to or harmed by a Salticid native to the US, or even the North American Continent.

    Margie, it sounds like you were bitten by a P Audax, though the spider would have to have been collected for identification to be certain. Please don’t worry. It may be painful and in a rotten spot to be bitten, but you will be fine. Don’t look for the answers to this stuff online though. Call a poison control center or go to an ER if you think you may be in danger for something. If for no other reason, it’s worth it for the piece of mind knowing you’re talking to a professional, right? At least the Spider’s defense worked and probably saved it, though that’s probably no comfort to you.

    Geri, Hallelujah and Amen! Finally someone talking some sense! People, Spiders do NOT want to bite you, not even in defense. even the most aggressive ones will not bother unless they feel they are in very immediate mortal danger. All Spiders have other defenses designed to give them a moment to flee while their aggressor pauses. Even Widow Spiders will shoot silk into an attacker’s face to make them stop a second so the Widow can flee, *before* the Spider is put in a position where it has to bite.

    Venom is a substance that takes much resources to make. It’s for subduing prey. They don’t want to waste it on YOU. It puts them in greater danger of not being able to make more before they need to catch their next meal. They will try ANYTHING else first before they bite.

    Salticids especially, they’re very, very smart. They learn things from experience and they can be trained. Their eyesight is almost as sharp as a Human’s, too.

    The key is to keep your eyes open and don’t poke them. If one is living somewhere you don’t want them, sweep their web *gently* from the far side from where the spider is crouched and they will run away or drop. If they drop, scoop in a cup and take it outside.

    Above all, don’t be another ignorant, bumbling, half-evolved Ape. Use the resources you have in front of you a Learn – not from sites like this, but from actual scientific articles and online magazines on the subjects you need to look up. Use Google Scholar, if you have to. Tree of Life and Bug Guide are also good sites, and even go on You Tube and check out the multitude of Arachnophiles on there who handle and video spiders of all kinds.

    Finally, since I’m on a rant, I may as well say – the word is “Venomous” not “Poisonous”. These are NOT Synonyms. For something to be Poisonous, you have to EAT it. It must carry within it a compound the Human body cannot excrete in any manner, nor process, and which is also detrimental to Human tissue once ingested. Venom is INJECTED, through a sting or a bite. So, unless you’re planning on eating a spider, please don’t ask if it’s Poisonous! It’s not, no spiders have Poison and you could probably safely eat any Genus of Spider if you really wanted to.

    K, thanks. /rant

  17. Cori says:

    @ Geri:

    If you are such a believer in nature and letting nature take it’s course then surely you must realize a few things.

    A) Animals kill other animals all the time – for example – have you ever screamed at a cat for hunting down a poor helpless spider, playing with it and then killing it? My cat doesn’t hunt spiders for food, it’s just for sport. It’s part of the circle of life, if we don’t kill some of the spiders that invade our habitat we would be over run with them.

    B) Most people aren’t killing them because they are heartless, most people kill spiders as a defense mechanism when they feel threatened. This is a completely normal/natural response to a creature encroaching on their territory. This should serve as an evolutionary learning lesson for the spider – don’t be about where you will be killed. Animals learn and develop instinctual tactics based on these actions. If enough of their kind get killed in human homes then maybe they will learn not to go there.

    C) Quit treating humans as a disease or parasite – we are animals and are entitled to our habitat and territory (and to defend it!) just like every other being out there. You seem to think that it is OK for other animals to kill when being threatened, but not humans? You think that spider would hesitate to bite you if you got too close to it’s nest? Get off it. Spiders are potentially dangerous and serve as a threat not only to us but especially our young. If you are a potentially poisonous or dangerous spider in my home, threatening my territory and my family you will be killed, just as I would kill a rabid dog or a bear that marched into my living room.

    FYI – I practice ‘catch and release’ all the time, however I don’t judge those who do not. I also do not think myself so superior to others others that I feel the need to use terms such as ‘moronic’ or ‘Idiots.’ Next time take a second to calm down before you post and word your post as an intelligent and well thought out person because now it is you who sounds like a raving moron who has very little understanding of how humans fit into our ecosystem. How about you quit being so self righteous that you think you get to tell others what to do and how you think they should conduct themselves…’cause guess what King Geri? It’s not up to you!

  18. m says:

    I JUST got bit by my female pet jumper on the tip of my pinky… and oh it HURTS. I freaked and immediately started squeezing out the blood. It’s my fault.. I had dropped her container as I was going to feed her and I went to detour her back into it after she landed on the floor. It’s very sore and I think I even see a bruise forming at one of the punctures. I am fairly sure (all spiders are poisonous to an extent, it just depends on what it’s poisonous to) she isn’t harmful to me. But it’s throbbing and a little shaky. I’m just glad it wasn’t my pet black widow. I’d have had to kill her if she escaped. The jumper is back in her container and with fresh food. She’s big too. Both of them. One bite won’t stop me. But everyone be careful.

  19. margie says:

    I took a sip off the straw of my soda that i had left in car and something bit me in the back of the throat. after alot of coughing, Gagging, and finally vomiting i expelled a small black spider with green eyes or fangs. my throat hurt for abot a day and a half. Should i be concerned? i was definitely grossed out! I live in Pennsylvania.

  20. Micho says:

    To expel spiders, try to spell the zones where they hide with a mixture of lemon oil and water.

  21. Kayla says:

    I live in Hamilton, Ontario and just the other day I came across a rather large spider for our area, it was grayish black with a triangle white spot on it’s back, it had little fangs, as much as I could see they were the same color as him, he was furry and seemed to have great eye sight as he lifted his head to watch us watching him. I can’t seem to find out what kind of spider he is, as the pictures of the jumping spiders don’t seem to match what he looked like, I have never in my life seen a spider like this one, does anyone have an idea what he could be?

  22. Geri says:

    If I insult some people here, too bad. However, I find certain people’s need to kill living creatures that they don’t understand to be cruel, stupid, ignorant and offensive. Someone above wrote, “They (jumping spiders) will leap toward you rather than away, when you try to kill them.” DUH! It’s called “defending your life.” When people say and do such asinine things, I almost wish the defenseless creatures they destroy so thoughtlessly and callously were armed, in order to have a more fair and even chance. And then, there’s someone else who killed the spider first and asked if it was dangerous after. WTF? Are you people so moronic and your ridiculous phobias so out-of-control that you don’t realize that you’re the greater threat, not a tiny arachnid? All you need to do is be more observant when you enter into wooded areas and places where spiders might dwell. Unfortunately, common sense is extremely uncommon. Idiots, plain and simple.

    Learn to respect life — all life. Make the time and effort to educate yourself, instead of acting thoughtlessly on fear-based impulse. You’re not so superior if you can’t do this. You’re only bigger.

  23. Donmartini says:

    Ring-like rash might be an indication it was a tick (another type of arachnid “spider” that is parasitic instead of predatory), as that is a common reaction, although not all tick bites result in a ring. Did the ring originally look different than in the picture? It’s usually a very pronounced, solid red ring with the bite in the middle. Might want to try researching other insect and bites that leave rings or asking your doctor.

  24. Jennifer Peirson says:

    My daughter is allergic to spider venom as well as mosquito. Even a bite from a “harmless” as many of you are calling Black Jumping Spiders, will cause an allergic reaction.

    If we don’t get Benadryl into our daughter right after a bite, the reaction is out of control if it’s on a limb the swelling that happens brings it X3 it’s normal size, and the whole limb is hot and red.

    I guess I’m a horrible person but I kill each and every one of these spiders as soon as I see 1 and I’m calling a fumigator today to spray our yards. I’d rather have an ton of you mad at me for killing your beloved pets, than be jabbing my daughter in the thigh with her epipen b/c she’s not breathing.

  25. NONO says:

    I HATE SPIDERS AND BUGS DEATHLY AFRAID OF BOTH BUT MOSTLY SPIDERS. I HAVE THESE AWFUL THINGS IN MY HOME AND EVERY YEAR THEY GET WORSE/MORE. THEY LOOK LIKE MINIATURE TARANTULAS. THEY ARE EVIL. I KILL EVERYONE I SEE IF I AN HOME ALONE, IF SOMEONE IS HERE WITH ME THEY HAVE TO KILL IT. I HAVE HAD THEM JUMP AT ME BEFORE I SMOOSH THEM. NEVER BEEN BITTEN THOUGH, NEVER LANDED ON ME. KILL THEM ALL. SMOOSH SMOOSH SMOOSH!!! I HAVE BIRDS SO I CANT USE SPRAYS INSIDE WHAT CAN I USE INDOORS TO GET RID OF THESE UGLY GUYS?

  26. Jess says:

    Finding a lot of spider (jumpers) now with all the rain here, and they are fun to watch, absolutely. But everything bites, or can bite, I suppose. And jumpers are venomous too, but for humans, it’s rarely bad, or fatal. Fevers, nausea, headaches, and sores at the bite area are usually the most common if you get anything at all.

  27. Jessica says:

    I was weeding to plant some seeds, and I am pretty petrified of spiders, but I came across this little black and white spider with (what I thought) were emerald green eyes .. and unlike normal where I would yell for someone to squish it, I actually tried to pick it up with my shovel so I could get a better look at it .. it was the prettiest little thing and I let it go. Aside from my HUGE fear of all that is spider … I actually enjoy seeing these little guys :) and am happy to know that they are harmless so I don’t have to worry about my kids being around them either!

  28. Jackie says:

    Thank you I have a pet jumper to it’s cool and some people do have connections with animals like me. I have connections with spiders cause I held a lot of spiders and none of them bite me even though I was 5 and animals love me too, so yeah.

  29. carla says:

    Well if they bite they have never bitten us. My kids carry them around like little puppies. I am always wary. But Dad and kids have all held and pet them. Today my 2 year old grabbed a huge almost 2 inches off the wall. I was a little scared with it being so big it would hurt my little guy. He had it pinched between his fingers. I thought for sure it was dead (he is my little carpenter ant crusher) My son put it down and it didn’t move for a minute. We were a little bummed. I inspected my son and found no marks he wasn’t upset just happy about the whole ordeal. Then the jumpy popped up and off he went.

    Hubby took him out to the garage where he would be safer. Amazingly my 2 year old managed to not hurt the spider and amazingly the spider didn’t bite him. So either my son has super spider trance powers or jumpies don’t bite! The week before my 6 year old was carrying one around and put him in his room to keep him safe from hobos. If there was one pet I would recommend it would be a jumpy! No maintenance, occasionally comes out to say hello…eats bad spiders…i.e widows hobos…I like wolfies too, but not as good of hunters.

  30. Jackie says:

    It also had green fangs black and furry with white rings going around it’s legs, and white dots.I know for sure it’s a jumping spider because it stalks it’s prey ( flies other spiders). It puts up it’s front legs when it’s feels threaten it’s really cool how it stalks and kills prey. I saw it do this five times.

  31. Jackie says:

    I live in Aurora, Illinois and I came across a black and white jumping spider. I found it on the wall well actually my friend saw it but it was in my house and I started to bug it the it fell and we got scared but I caught it and kept it. I had it since Friday. Will I be okay if it bit me?

  32. Lilly says:

    As a matter of fact I happen to love jumping spiders and I want to tell you about their bite. In rare cases jumping spiders do bite. But they only bite if they feel threatened or in danger. For example one time I put my pointing finger down next to a phidippus audax jumping spider and moved it in front of her face, she put her two front arms up and she held up her fangs at me so I moved my finger around more and she almost bit me so then I took my arm away immediately.I’ve always I mean always handled spiders and I’ve never I repeat never got bit by a spider.Also I saw a brown recluse in the store walmart I know pretty much all the spider types and with my heart I know it was a recluse.

    I just saw it running across the floor and I got something to pick it up being careful not to let it touch me…oops I forgot about the jumping spiders okay so I am always careful not to get bit I’ve always let spiders crawl across my hands,hand to hand and I never threaten them. Keeping jumping spiders you if you want to keep them for a wile make sure they are in a sealed container and also make sure there is lots of food around your home. Feeding jumping spiders first catch a little moth or something that they can get a hold of,put it in the container and after a wile they will eventually they will come after the bug attack it and paralyze it then start sucking the bugs insides in to its abdomen (eating it).

  33. Emma says:

    I HAVEN’T SEEN a jumping spider before but i am not scared, i think they wont bite me. sore one but i haven’t seen it with a closer look and i think i still have luck. well i think so. my hole family has almost seen a jumping spider my mum has seen one and my big brother jack has seen one. jack sore one in his bedroom. my mum sore one at the park. my dad hasn’t seen one my little brother kyle hasn’t seen one. and i haven’t had a closer look. well i’m in the middle iv’ seen one but not a closer then mum or jack.

  34. keith jr says:

    guys OK don’t think I’m a wimp about this but I’m scared of these spiders man the other day i woke up and it was on my wall 13 inches from my face scared the daylights out of me but it woke me up is there a way to get over this help me please :( :)

  35. Junior says:

    I have a jumping spider I’m watching it eat a cricket 2 times bigger than it! It’s so cool!

  36. Adam says:

    I live in California and I was a sleep and had a dream that a BIG (more like medium) spider jumped on me then i woke up i looked on my selling and the spider was right there. i killed it and i don’t know what it is. but this one was smaller. I’m really curious of what it is. it has big fangs, golden, white hair, 6 eyes.
    thanks for reading

  37. Jess says:

    I live in Central Florida and observed a small spider in my bushes. It seems to have a small cone
    thing on its back and the end of his legs are red. There is a small hole in the web where it seems
    to stay with the cone sticking through. Any ideas?

  38. sam says:

    i was bitten by a real little bright green one in Australia, on my palm, whilst bringing in washing, didn’t hurt much but two weeks later, it itched like heck and a sort of (i can only describe as) shard of fiber glass came out. Still itching like mad and its sort of turned into a unitchable itch. I don’t know if this is why its turning into a wound or me with the itching?

  39. Beverly says:

    Jumping spiders do indeed bite. (Black fuzzy kind with three white dots on its back) I have three confirmed bites in the past six months. Our camper, parked out in the boondocks has a healthy population of them. I did not see the offending critter the first time I was bitten, but did see it the next two times. They are aggressive, and will leap toward you rather than away when you try to kill them. The bite does not hurt at first, it’s less than a pinprick. But within several hours a blister forms and the skin sloughs off. The blister acts like a burn for a week, weeping and sloughing off dead skin. It eventually leaves a small scar. Other symptoms I experienced all three times was a persistent headache on days one and two.

  40. Boogaloo says:

    Jumping spiders do bite when threatened, which I inadvertently did today while unfolding a weathered piece of paper from an outdoor box. This one was of the larger variety (about 5/8-in. not counting legs). Largely hairy black with some washed out yellow banding. It nailed me on the pinky finger with what felt like a mild version of a wasp sting for just a couple of minutes. Thank goodness it wasn’t a widow. For some reason, this part of the southeast seems to be going through a bumper crop of black and brown widows the last several years … I’m finding them EVERY where I go. Time was, it was very rare to see a widow and one had to look hard. Now, it takes no effort at all to encounter them.

  41. Heath says:

    First off, CapnScumbone, JUMPING SPIDERS DO BITE!!! or rather they can. I have been bitten. As for no confirmed cases, why would there be? they are not toxic and the bite wasn’t even painful. It was about the same as a fire ant. With that said, why do all of you assume that when you get a bite it is a spider? Of all the thinks out there that can and will bite you, why does it have to be a spider? Centipedes, ticks, fleas, scorpions, asps, wasps, bees, mosquito’s (Which are far more dangerous than spiders to humans on average due to the diseases they can carry), bed bugs, and so many things I can not possibly list. Why is it always spiders that are to blame for unknown bites?

    Now while I made it clear that they (jumping spiders) do bite, I did not mean that they go out of their way to bite you. I was not bitten until I actually grabbed one between my index finger and thumb(to remove it from my shirt). But I guess anything would bite if threatened with life or death. Prior to this, I have handled many with no incident. But just because you have an unknown bite, doesn’t mean it was a spider.

  42. Craig says:

    Thank you for this great website. I have many spiders in my home – no infestation, but I don’t like to kill them. As a result of letting spiders live in cohabitation with me and my son we have no issues with any other bugs, not roaches, flies, moths, anything. We seem to have established quite the little ecosystem.
    That being said, I live in the Pacific Northwest, where Hobo spiders are a genuine threat and Black Widows very common, both species renowned for their aggressiveness. I have seen the black and white Jumping spider from time to time, though rarely, in my house. I understand having some sort of competing predatory spider will generally keep the Hobos away, and the Jumping spiders do prey on other species.
    My questions: Is the very presence of Jumping spiders generally enough to keep Hobo spiders and Black Widows, both aggressive and dangerous species, in a non-issue status in my home? If so, should I actually seek to bring Jumping spiders to my house to assure control?

    Many thanks from the Pacific Northwest,
    Craig

  43. CapnScumbone says:

    People, salticids (jumpers) do not bite. If you claim otherwise, go to your nearest college and speak with the dean of biological sciences. If I’m wrong and you confirm the attack, some lucky biologist might get a thesis out of it.

  44. CapnScumbone says:

    These guys are lots of fun to watch, and extremely beneficial to have around the house. They prey voraciously on running spiders, which tend to bite people in their sleep and leave nasty welts. Don’t make the mistake of killing one if you wake up with spider bites, they DO NOT BITE. There are NO confirmed cases of a jumper biting a human, and I’ve handled enough to know that they’re not aggressive. Though they might launch themselves at you when they’re feeling adventurous, it’s certainly not with the intent of doing you any harm. Leave them be or encourage their presence, and you’ll find fewer roaches, silverfish, and biting spiders to bother you.

  45. andrew valdez says:

    I caught a small black spider that has green eyes and its harry. It has 2 white strips on each leg and it also has 3 white dots on its back.
    If you know what it is or want to know more send me a email please.

  46. Jaime says:

    i lived in central VA with my family as a teenager in the late 90’s/early 00’s, and i slept on a bottom bunk usually. Well, i would see these black furry fairly small in size spiders all the time on my ‘ceiling’ aka the bottom of the top bunk, the wood, the window near my bed, the wall, etc. and when i would wake up the next morning, i’d feel sick and see a red welt, and a white center, usually puss-like or actual puss, i dunno, it’s been a while. So, in short i don’t think they are entirely harmless, it depends on the person and place where they’re living or hanging out. Because i know for a fact they bit me many times nightly over a period of about 2 years. i killed some of them, but most jumped too fast for me to smush em.

    They were living in my habitat, not the other way around :) And i did have a reaction to them, felt nauseous, slight fever, etc. Maybe that was because I had other things going on that weakened my immune system or maybe i am just simply allergic. If you like them (i have no clue why) and they’re not a pest, i say live and let live. I’d call an exterminator or kill em yourself if they’re hanging out in your bedroom tho.

  47. Rich says:

    I saw a black and orange furry spider on my motorcycle today and I am not sure what kind it is. It had blue fangs and what looked like 4 eyes across the head. I am assuming by some of the comments I have read here, that it is a jumping spider. It did jump a couple times when I was taking pictures. I am enclosing a couple pics for observation. I live in Northwest Florida.

    Red and black spider

  48. john says:

    Today I saw black jumping spider is chasing a cockroach as twice as its size. And it leap into the cockroach and capture it.They struggle about 30secs because cockroach try to get free from spiders fangs.It was fun and amazing to watch how this little spider capture the prey.

  49. jorge says:

    Many years ago when I was working as a landscaper I was sitting down for lunch when I noticed a small jumping spider on my knee. I just watched it for a while because it was cool looking and then a small gnat happened to fly near it.The spider leaped up and snagged the gnat right out of the air. I will never forget that little bit of amazing drama. I feel privileged to have been lucky enough to see this as I am sure that it is not something that most people get to see up close.

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