The Nearctic Spider Database, http://www.canadianarachnology.org/data/spiders/30580
Misumena vatia (Clerck, 1757)
goldenrod crab spider
FAMILY: THOMISIDAE Sundevall, 1833
Genus: Misumena Latreille, 1804
Species: Misumena vatia (Clerck, 1757)
Author of this page: Hancock, John (Page complete and awaiting review)
General Comments: This species is an ambush predators of pollinating insects. Sexes very different from each other. Female capable of changing colour white - orange or orange to white, but slowly.
Common Names
Family Common Name:
crab spiders
Genus Common Name:
flower crab spiders
Species Common Name:
goldenrod crab spider
Distribution
Global Distribution: Holarctic
Nearctic States & Provinces:
AB BC QC YT AK CA CO IL MT NH NC OK SC SD UT WA WI WY
Collection Locales Mapped by Year Collected:
Natural History, Phenology & Image(s)
Feeding Guild:‡
ambushers
‡Feeding guild when noted defined by Uetz, G. W., J. Halaj, and A. B. Cady. 1999. Guild structure of spiders in major crops. Journal of Arachnology 27:270-280.
Recorded Habitats:
M. vatia occupies many species of flowering plant's flower heads and will retreat underneath petals or among them.
Life & Natural History:
(not yet recorded or unknown)
Seasonality of Specimen Records:
Image(s) of Habitus:

Credit: Bryan, Nora

Credit: Murray, Tom
Details About Males
Description:
Carapace red to red-brown, dorsum of abdomen whitish yellow with paired red longitudinal bands. Legs I and II red brown with yellow rings, legs III and IV yellow.
Male Dimensions:

A+B = 3 mm
A = 1.43 mm
C = 1.46 mm
Image of External Male Genitalia:

Credit: Hancock, John
Details About Females
Description:
Much larger. Carapace and abdomen can be either yellow or white, with red or pink longitudinal stripes on abdomen.
Female Dimensions:

A+B = 8 mm
A = 3.03 mm
C = 2.97 mm
Image of Epigynum:

Credit: Hancock, John
Synonyms and Chresonyms†
| Araneus vatius Clerck 1757 |
| Misumena vatia Clerck 1757 |
| Aranea calycina Linnaeus 1758 |
| Misumena vatia Clerck 1758 |
| Aranea 4-lineata Linnaeus 1761 |
| Aranea hasselquistii Scopoli 1763 |
| Aranea kleinii Scopoli 1763 |
| Aranea osbekii Scopoli 1763 |
| Aranea uddmanni Scopoli 1763 |
| Aranea scorpiformis Fabricius 1775 |
| Aranea virginea Müller 1776 |
| Aranea albonigricans Martini & Goeze 1778 |
| Aranea citrea De Geer 1778 |
| Aranea quinquepunctata Martini & Goeze 1778 |
| Aranea sulphereoglobosa Martini & Goeze 1778 |
| Aranea sulphurea Martini & Goeze 1778 |
| Aranea citrina Fourcroy 1785 |
| Aranea calicina Olivier 1789 |
| Aranea cretata Preyssler 1791 |
| Aranea albonigricans Panzer 1804 |
| Aranea quinquepunctata Panzer 1804 |
| Misumena citrea Latreille 1804 |
| Thomisus calycinus Walckenaer 1805 |
| Thomisus citreus Walckenaer 1805 |
| Thomisus dauci Walckenaer 1805 |
| Thomisus dauci Hahn 1820 |
| Thomisus calycinus Hahn 1831 |
| Thomisus citreus Hahn 1831 |
| Thomisus citreus Hahn 1832 |
| Thomisus pratensis Hahn 1832 |
| Thomisus spinipes Brullé 1832 |
| Thomisus citreus Sundevall 1833 |
| Thomisus pratensis Hahn 1833 |
| Thomisus quadrilineatus Hahn 1833 |
| Thomisus scorpiformis Hahn 1833 |
| Thomisus calycinus C. L. Koch 1837 |
| Thomisus citreus georgiensis Walckenaer 1837 |
| Thomisus phrygiatus Walckenaer 1837 |
| Thomisus viridis Walckenaer 1837 |
| Thomisus devius C. L. Koch 1845 |
| Thomisus fartus Hentz 1847 |
| Thomisus vatius Thorell 1856 |
| Thomisus citreus Blackwall 1861 |
| Thomisus vatius Westring 1861 |
| Pachyptile devia Simon 1864 |
| Thomisus calycinus Prach 1866 |
| Thomisus cucurbitinus Sordelli 1868 |
| Misumena vatia Thorell 1872 |
| Misumena vatia Menge 1876 |
| Misumena vatia Becker 1882 |
| Misumena vatia Hansen 1882 |
| Misumena vatia Emerton 1892 |
| Misumena vatia McCook 1894 |
| Misumena vatia Simon 1895 |
| Misumena vatia F. O. P.-Cambridge 1900 |
| Misumena vatia Bösenberg 1902 |
| Misumena vatia Emerton 1902 |
| Misumena calycina Bösenberg & Strand 1906 |
| Misumena vatia occidentalis Kulczynski 1911 |
| Misumena personata Simon 1916 |
| Misumena calycina Reimoser 1929 |
| Misumena occidentalis Simon 1932 |
| Misumena occidentalis Denis 1934 |
| Misumena calycina Gertsch 1939 |
| Misumena vatia Chickering 1940 |
| Misumena vatia Comstock 1940 |
| Misumena calycina Muma 1943 |
| Misumena calycina Chamberlin & Ivie 1944 |
| Misumena calycina Tullgren 1944 |
| Misumena calycina Kaston 1948 |
| Misumena vatia Locket & Millidge 1951 |
| Misumena vatia Zhu & Wang 1963 |
| Misumena vatia Schick 1965 |
| Misumena vatia Azheganova 1968 |
| Misumena vatia Vilbaste 1969 |
| Misumena vatia Miller 1971 |
| Misumena vatia Braendegaard 1972 |
| Misumena vatia Dondale & Redner 1978 |
| Misumenops vatia Hu & Guo 1982 |
| Misumena vatia Hidalgo 1983 |
| Misumena vatia Loerbroks 1984 |
| Misumenops vatia Hu 1984 |
| Misumena vatia Roberts 1985 |
| Misumena vatia Zhu et al. 1985 |
| Misumenops vatia Guo 1985 |
| Misumena vatia Yaginuma 1986 |
| Misumena vatia Zhang 1987 |
| Misumena vatia Ono 1988 |
| Misumena vatia Chikuni 1989 |
| Misumena vatia Heimer & Nentwig 1991 |
| Misumena vatia Herreros 1991 |
| Misumena vatia Danilov 1993 |
| Misumena vatia Roberts 1995 |
| Misumena vatia Urones 1996 |
| Misumena vatia Mcheidze 1997 |
| Misumena vatia Song & Zhu 1997 |
| Misumena vatia Roberts 1998 |
| Misumena vatia Song, Zhu & Chen 1999 |
| Misumena vatia Kim & Gwon 2001 |
| Misumena vatia Song, Zhu & Chen 2001 |
| Misumena vatia Marusik & Logunov 2002 |
| Misumena vatia Namkung 2002 |
| Misumena vatia Namkung 2003 |
| Misumena vatia Paquin & Dupérré 2003 |
| Misumena vatia Lehtinen 2005 |
| Misumena vatia Trotta 2005 |
| Misumena vatia Almquist 2006 |
Taxonomic References†
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†Nomenclature and taxonomic references from the World Spider Catalog accessible at http://research.amnh.org/entomology/spiders/catalog/THOMISIDAE.html
Other Nearctic Members of Genus Misumena Latreille, 1804‡‡
M. fidelis Banks, 1898 ...............USA, Mexico
‡‡May also include species with Palearctic distribution
Page Reference:
Hancock, John. submitted. Taxonomic and natural history description of FAM: THOMISIDAE, Misumena vatia (Clerck, 1757).
In: The Nearctic Spider Database. David P. Shorthouse (editor). World Wide Web electronic publication. Direct link: http://www.canadianarachnology.org/data/spiders/30580 (Accessed: 7/20/2008 4:02:47 PM).
Author Email Address: spidermanjohn@shaw.ca
Text Last Modified: 2006-03-29T17:28:22Z