Fringed Jumping Spider Portia Fimbriata Species

The fringed jumping spider has a notorious reputation for feasting on other spiders. No thanks to its cannibalistic behavior, this jumping spider species has attracted a lot of interest from experts looking to unravel the mystery behind its unique behaviors. Their extremely varied and impressive prey capture technique means that our furry friends are able to learn from previous experiences while solving mazes from just observation.

Read on to learn everything you need to know about the Portia Fimbriata.

Scientific name

Fringe jumping spider goes by the scientific name- Portia Fimbriata. This jumping spider species belongs to the Salticidae family and is most commonly found in Australia and Southeast Asia.

Identification and size

The female fringed jumping spider has a much bigger body in terms of size as it measures between 6.8 to 10.5 mm in length. On the flip side, adult males measure about 5.3 to 6.5 mm.

While both sexes are agile web builders and skilled spider hunters, their physical attributes make them easy to identify. To start with, both males and females sport dark brown carapace, a brown underside, and reddish-brown chelicerae. In addition, they also have soft fringed hairs with fine, faint markings. Plus, their legs are spindly and fringed.

Our spider friends have been reported to be cryptic in both appearance and behavior. This makes them super difficult to spot in their habitats.

Other characteristics feature: In a bid to camouflage and evade predators, our furry friends have lots of clustered hair on their bodies.

Distribution and Habitat

The fringed jumping spider is famous across Northern Australia, including Queensland, Western Australia, and the Northern territory.

Besides Australia, our spider friends are also famous across Asian countries like Sri Lanka, Burma, China, Malaysia, Sumatra, and others. Their unique hunting skills and excellent attributes help them to thrive very well in these areas.

As per habitat, fringed jumping spiders do very well in savanna woodland and rainforest. And just like other jumping spiders, Portia Fimbriata likes to spin webs among buttress roots, rocks, tree barks, or foliage.

In arid habitats, they are most commonly spotted in cave entrances and rockpile outcrops.

Food/diet

While the fringed jumping spider will readily feast on smaller insects like flies, roaches, mealworms, mosquitoes, and more, it particularly likes to feed on spiders and their eggs. To be specific, the fringed jumping spider targets web-building spiders.

Thanks to their impeccable hunting skills, fringed jumping spiders will take the fight to their prey’s den and are skilled at maneuvering webs and silk.

Besides their impeccable hunting skills and excellent vision, our spider friends are agile jumpers who can take out their prey in swift precision.

When bred in captivity, their hunting skills are limited as they are no longer allowed to roam around freely. To this end, you must ensure you provide their favorite meals.

This shouldn’t be a problem as you can easily find their favorite meals from pet stores close to you.

Special behaviors and adaptations

Fringe jumping spiders are agile hunters who walk slowly and spring into action when seizing prey. Thanks to their large anterior eyes, which is very typical among jumping spiders, our spider friends can easily spot their prey.

Because they are intelligent creatures, Portia Fimbriata use their superior behavioral skills to lure their victims into a sense of false security. Also, due to their slow gait and resemblance to a piece of detritus, fringe jumping spiders can fool unsuspecting jumping spiders.

When maneuvering webs, our furry friends use their legs and palps to send specialized vibration patterns. This tends to send fake mating signals to unsuspecting spiders. Once they fall for the bait, Portia Fimbriata goes on for the kill.

Now the big question is, how do fringed jumping spiders determine which hunting technique works best? Well, according to experts, our spider friends tend to hunt using trial and error procedure. Also, their hunting skills are backed up by cues from their prey.

How long do they live for?

Like other jumping spiders out there, the fringed jumping spider has quite a short lifespan. In the wild, where they fend for themselves, they can live for up to 1 year. But when bred in captivity, our leaper friends can live for up to 3 years.

Breeding behaviors

When it comes to breeding, the Portia Fimbriata has a unique mating behavior that stuns experts. According to experts, during mating, sub-adult male and female fringed jumping spiders live closely on the same web, mating after they molt into adulthood.

Is it dangerous or venomous to humans?

The Portia Fimbriata is a particularly vicious jumping spider with a venom that is strong enough to incapacitate its prey. Its cannibalistic behavior makes it a torn in the flesh of other web-building spiders.

That said, the fringed jumping spider isn’t dangerous to humans. While it tends to bite when it is handled roughly or feels threatened, it is particularly friendly to humans. This explains why a lot of exotic pet lovers are looking to raise them as pets.

If you ever get bitten by the fringed jumping spider, the most you’ll notice is redness and irritations that disappear after a few days.

Frequently asked questions

What do fringe jumping spiders eat the most?

While our fuzzy friends love to eat smaller insects and sometimes large insects that are three times their size, they like to eat other spiders and their eggs, particularly web-building spiders. Thanks to their cryptic behavior and impressive hunting skills, our spider friends can take out their prey with precision.

That said, Portia Fimbriata will not shy away from insects like mosquitoes, flies, roaches, mealworms, and others.

What is their temperament?

The fringed jumping spider has a very short temper towards its prey. But when it comes to humans, this beautiful creature is super friendly. While it has potent venoms that can paralyze its prey, its venom isn’t harmful to humans.

How often should you feed fringed jumping spider?

If you’re breeding them in captivity, it’s important to ensure that they are adequately fed. We doubt this should be a problem, especially considering that they don’t eat very much. Plus, their food is readily available and can be bought from pet stores close to you.

For subadult spiders, you can feed them every 2-3 days. While juveniles can be fed once every 1 to 2 days.