Pandercetes gracilis
| Lichen huntsman spider | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Family: | Sparassidae |
| Genus: | Pandercetes |
| Species: | P. gracilis |
| Binomial name | |
| Pandercetes gracilis C.L. Koch, 1875 | |
The Lichen Huntsman Spider, Pandercetes gracilis(also called the lichen spider), is a spider found in Queensland, Australia, as well as New Guinea, Maluku Islands, and Sulawesi.
Description
The Lichen huntsman can vary in color amongst individuals, all of which are of the color of different species of lichen, but according to the Queensland Museum Inquiry Centre:
Spider colour is fixed at its previous moult. A slight exception being the abdomen with its much thinner walls which may change especially according to accumulated waste products or what it has eaten. So they can't change colour like a frog, gecko or squid. Some species of spiders that camouflage on tree bark have multiple colour forms however.
So far as is known, a lichen spider would not be selecting a background according to colour as these are like most (but not all) spiders in having poor vision. It is expected that they would have other ways of detecting a nice lichen-covered background to sit against however.
Diet and hunting
The spider is known to hunt by ambush and then pounce when its prey comes within range. Its exceptional agility and speed, as well as its ability to squeeze into tight corners and camouflage, gives it a strong advantage both in capturing prey and evading predators.