Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens

10mm sub-adult male Green Huntsman, Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 6th April 2025.

Huntsman Spiders - Sparassidae

The Green Huntsman is the UK's only Huntsman species. Worldwide there are over 1380 species of Huntsman, split between 96 genera, within the family Sparassidae, formerly the family Heteropodidae. Rather than building webs Huntsman Spiders catch their prey by hunting, which may involve ambushing their prey, slowly stalking their prey, or chasing down their prey. Huntsman Spiders are sometimes referred to as Giant Crab Spiders, due to their size, leg arrangement and general appearance. Some of the larger Huntsman species are sometimes known as Wood Spiders, because of their preference for woody habitats.

Throughout the world Huntsman Spiders can usually be found in warm, temperate or tropical environments. Sparassids typically have 8 eyes, but there is at least one exception. There is a cave-dwelling species, Sinopoda caeca, which is found in the caves of Vang Vieng, in Laos. This pale, almost beige, spider is completely devoid of any eyes. This is a fairly common adaptation by creatures that live their entire lives in complete darkness. - LINK. Laos also has some of the largest Huntsman Spiders in the world too. The male Giant Huntsman, Heteropoda maxima, has an incredible leg span of around 25–30 cm. One of the most striking species of Huntsman is the David Bowie Spider, Heteropoda davidbowie. A large, hairy, orange huntsman, discovered in Malaysia. This huntsman was named in honour of the British rock star, David Bowie, and was first described in 2008. - LINK

Bites from Huntsman Spiders are typically mild, and do not usually require any hospital treatment. There are a minority of large Sparassids, such as some Rain Spiders, from the Palystes genus, and the Huntsman Spiders from the Neosparassus genus, that have been known to inflict quite painful bites, that can on occasion be associated with localised swelling and pain, nausea, headaches, vomiting, irregular and elevated pulse rate, and heart palpitations, indicating the possibility of systemic neurotoxin effects.

The Green Huntsman - (Micrommata virescens)

The vast majority of Sparassidae (Huntsman Spiders) are distributed in tropical, warm, and temperate regions of Africa, Asia, Australia, the Americas, and the Mediterranean Basin, with most species being found in the warmer areas between 40° south and 40° north latitude. Micrommata virescens, which occurs from England to Russia, and all the way to Japan, is an exception. This species has a Palearctic distribution. It occurs naturally in Northern and Central Europe, including Denmark and Great Britain The Green Huntsman is the only native species of Huntsman found in the UK. This is a very striking and distinctive looking spider, that shouldn't be confused with any other species in the UK, with the possible exception of maybe the Green Crab Spider, Diaea dorsata. Adult Green Huntsman don't reach the large size of many other Huntsman spiders around the world. Adult female Micrommata virescens typically grow to around 10-15mm in body-length, with gravid females occasionally reaching up to17mm. The slightly smaller males typically reach about 7-10mm in body-length. This is a relatively slow growing spider and both sexes usually take about 18 months or more to reach maturity.

Micrommata virescens was first described back in 1757 by the naturalist Carl Clerck. Initially the male and female were mistakenly believed to be different species and the name Araneus virescens was assigned for the female and Araneus roseus for the male. - LINK

Like other Huntsman species, from various other countries, the Green Huntsman does not build a web to catch its prey. Instead the Green Huntsman relies on its camouflage and it's speed and agility to ambush its prey. Many synanthropic Sparassidae, from around the world, are brown or grey in colour. These colours help them to go unnoticed upon the walls of buildings on which they hunt. Obviously against such backgrounds the vividly bright green colouration of the Green Huntsman would afford it no camouflage at all, but against the bright green vegetation of the meadows, where this species can be found, their bright green colours provide the spider with surprisingly good camouflage.

The Green Huntsman often waits motionless, head facing downwards, and waits for prey to come within range before moving at great speed to pounce on its victim. The Green Huntsman is also quite a competent jumper too and will use its jumping skills to pounce on prey, or to evade capture from predators. Sometimes the spider will patrol the foliage, actively looking for prey to slowly stalk up on, before launching an attack. Green Huntsman spiders feed on a variety of small invertebrates that wander or land within range of their strike. Whilst they feed on a variety of prey my studies of the species has revealed that they seem to have a preference for small flying prey, especially small flies, Gnats and midges. Larger female specimens have even been known to take Honey Bees. - LINK

The Green Huntsman has a widespread but very scattered distribution in the UK, mainly in the southern half of England and SE Wales, and is classed as a nationally scarce species in Britain. See distribution map here. Even in areas where it is present it is never abundant in numbers, and can still be very difficult to find. Although largely confined to the southern half of Britain Micrommata virescens is also present at a small number of sites in central and northern England too. In September 2023 one specimen was photographed in Liverpool, at Stoneycroft, not too far from Newsham Park. - LINK. On 7th October 2023 a female specimen was photographed in a forest in Northamptonshire, near Corby. - LINK

Adult females are a very vivid green colour, with a slightly paler green abdomen, which often displays a darker median stripe in the centre. The adult males are also green in colour but are slightly darker in shade and not quite as bright green as the females. The abdomen of the adult male is a reddish-brown colour, with two longitudinal yellow stripes. Green Huntsman Spiders have eight small black eyes, positioned in an oval pattern, that are each encircled by a ring of short, white hairs. The genus name "Micrommata" originates from Greek and roughly translates to "with small eyes". The Greek words "micros" (μικρός, meaning small) and "mati" (μάτι, meaning eye).

Green Huntsman spiders are typically found in damp grass meadows and sheltered woodland edges and clearings, where they seem to favour the lower branches of young oak trees, tall grass, large clumps of heather, bracken and sedge tussocks. Other habitats may include moorland, heathland, parks and occasionally gardens that are close to ideal habitat. Mating most commonly takes place around June. Mating can be a lengthy process for Micrommata virescens. In 2004 one captive pairing of Micrommata virescens mated in front of the media, at a museum in Germany, for 4 and 1/2 hours. - LINK. There is an account in The World of Spiders (New Naturalist series) by the arachnologist W.S. Bristowe. Bristowe reports "There is no preliminary courtship, the male simply jumping on to the much larger female and seizing her abdomen or a leg with his chelicerae (jaws). The female makes no resistance while he climbs on to her back and leans over, allowing him to insert one of his palps. Mating may last 6 or 7 hours with each palp being inserted only once. At the end he retires rapidly."

After mating males make a rapid escape, but reportedly they still die within a few days after mating. Males that don't make a hasty retreat immediately after mating are eaten by the females. Where Micrommata virescens are found in good concentrations the females may engage in multiple matings, with different male specimens, to ensure fertilization. Mated females then head off to build a large silken brood-chamber for their egg-sac, usually constructed around 30-50cm above the ground. The retreat is typically made using small leaves, which are curled over and stitched together with silken threads. Oak tree saplings and other broad-leaved trees are regular choices for their retreat. Sometimes Bracken is used. On September 17th 2021 Luke Chambers found a couple of adult female Micrommata virescens with their brooding retreats built on Bog Myrtle, Myrica gale, at a site in Dorset - LINK.

A clutch of around 30-50 bright green eggs are then deposited, and are loosely bound together in a thin egg-sac covering, made of white silk. Although the female typically produces a single egg-sac one online source claims that the female may produce up to three egg-sacs within her retreat. The female guards her egg-sac without leaving her retreat unattended, even to feed. During this time of guarding the female can look quite emaciated. After about 4 weeks the eggs hatch. The 1st instar spiderlings moult immediately, or within a couple of days of hatching. The 2nd instar spiderlings remain within the retreat, under the supervision of the adult female, until they are ready to disperse and fend for themselves, which can be as soon as just one week after hatching.

When the spiderlings first hatch they are also bright green in colour and look like tiny garden peas with legs. You can see fantastic photos of the newly hatch spiderlings with the adult female here: SPIDERLINGS 1 SPIDERLINGS 2 SPIDERLINGS 3. The young juveniles typically disperse and start their independent lives in the latter half of July, or the start of August. On 5th July 2025 WS_Dorset_Macro shared a photo of an adult female Micrommata virescens guarding her egg-sac in Dorset. - LINK

The green colouration of the new spiderlings doesn't last long though and as the summer sun dries out the surrounding grass and vegetation the green spiderlings also show a distinct change in colour. This seasonal change in colour is a design by nature that allows the spiderlings to blend in with their habitat. The now independent juvenile specimens range in colour, from a light tan, to pale yellowish-green, or greenish-brown, or a combination of green and brown. They can also have reddish brown stripes, or flecks, on the abdomen and carapace, and reddish-brown spots on the legs and palps too. Theses muted green-brown shades of the juvenile Green Huntsman spiders affords them excellent camouflage amidst the autumnal colours of the surrounding vegetation. By winter all the juvenile spiders tend to be brown in colour. As the second spring arrives and the vegetation is bringing forth bright green new leaves, shoots and buds, the spiders once again go through another change colour. Most sub-adult specimens found in the spring are vivid green in colour, and blend in superbly with the fresh new vegetation that surrounds them. This transition from green, to duller shades of green and brown in the winter, and then back to a vivid green in the spring, is a rather impressive form of seasonal polyphenism.

After overwintering for the second time the immature specimens are in their final stage, before reaching maturity, and both male and female specimens are now mostly bright green in colour, similar to the adult females. Once again their bright green colouration affords them excellent camouflage against the new springtime leaves and buds. The green colouration results from the bilin pigment "micromatabilin" found in both the hemolymph and tissue fluids, which develop in the second spring, normally prior to the spider’s final moult, and not after the final moult, as many other sources incorrectly claim. Occasionally some specimens can retain a reddish-brown colouration right up until maturity, and occasionally even through to maturity as well., but this is very uncommon. See colourful sub-adult specimen here. Both sexes typically reach maturity in late spring or early summer. It is reported that juvenile Micrommata virescens exhibit a total of 9 instars for males and 10 for females to reach maturity. - LINK. Adults can normally be found from around April or May through until July, but some specimens may persist until October. May to August being the best months for females, and May to June the best for males. The majority of young juveniles typically disperse and start their independent lives at the end of July or the start of August. During late summer it is possible to find three separate generations of Micrommata virescens at the same time: adult specimens, juvenile specimens from the previous year, and newly hatched juveniles too.

British Spiders Spiders of Europe iNaturalist

Other People's Studies and Observations of Micrommata virescens

In 1995 studies of captive Micrommata virescens specimens, by Arthur Hall, Monika Lux & Ania Hall, showed that when kept in optimal conditions, at optimal temperatures and with optimal exposure to light, Micrommata virescens can develop more rapidly, and may reach maturity within just 7-9 months. They reported that wild Micrommata virescens specimens in Germany typically take three years to reach maturity, but some males hatched at the start of the season may reach maturity in their second year. They also reported that in the northern end of the species range it may take more than three years for the spiders to reach maturity. - LINK

In October of 2024 a beautiful pink-coloured juvenile Micrommata virescens was photographed in Serbia. - LINK

On 7th September 2025amateur arachnologist and photographer, Luke Chambers, went in search of brooding Micrommata virescens to photograph in Dorset, and made the following comment about his observations: "I saw around 3 egg sac retreats, all empty. One of which had a dead female inside, which had turned brown so it must have been there a while." It's uncertain whether any of the adult females ever leave their brooding retreats after the spiderlings have dispersed. It's also unclear whether the spiderlings feed on their mother if she dies in the retreat before the spiderlings have dispersed. These are questions that I hope to answer one day through my studies of this species. - LINK

A series of photos of adult female Micrommata virescens, along with their brooding retreats built in bracken in the New Forest, in Hampshire, were shared to Facebook in 2016 by Jackie Ley. The photos were taken on 22nd July. Interestingly these photos show that the adult females may choose to build their brooding retreats on either bright green bracken, which gives them excellent camouflage, or on older, brown bracken, where the bright green spider stands out like a sore thumb! It's also interesting to observe that the female doesn't seal herself away with the eggs. Some of Jackie's photos clearly show of the female specimens, that had already laid their eggs, and were sitting on the outside of their brooding retreat, and guarding the eggs from any potential threats. In the second link Jackie shared photos of another adult female specimen, sitting on the outside of her brooding retreat. This specimen was clearly still gravid and was just soaking up the sun. This shows that the female may not immediately deposit her eggs after constructing her brood chamber. Jackie also commented that "During September, I witnessed a female encase herself in an empty retreat, as if to hibernate / die / be eaten by this year's young". - LINK. LINK 2

A mating pair of Micrommata virescens were captured in the south of France, by Ed Nieuwenhuys, and were taken into captivity. Both were kept in the same enclosure and both spiders keenly fed upon flies placed in their enclosure. Despite being well fed on three flies the female still ate the male over the first night, as he was unable to escape from the enclosure. The female went on to produce an egg-sac that resulted in 50 spiderlings being hatched. The female, which looked quite emaciated following her guarding of the egg-sac, was able to put on weight again whilst being fed in captivity. She went on to build a second retreat, and produce another egg-sac. The second egg-sac contained 20 viable eggs which all hatched successfully. - LINK

Is Micrommata virescens a diurnal species?

The Green Huntsman is described in all written literature that I read, and in all other online sources, as being a diurnal species. Whilst this is largely true my own observations of this spider in captivity quickly revealed that the Green Huntsman is actually cathemeral, and during warmer conditions can be found hunting for prey both night and day. On several occasions when I placed live food into the spider's enclosure the prey would still be alive and wandering around late in the evening. When I checked on the spider again in the very early hours of the morning, whilst it was still completely dark, the spider was found on several occasions to be feeding on the prey it had just caught, thus proving that these spiders definitely also hunt at night. My conclusion is the Green Huntsman readily preys upon flying insects, such as flies, whilst they rest at night.

Green Huntsman have also been known to turn up on occasion in moth traps too, confirming that in the wild they are still actively searching at night for prey. On 18th April 2023 at least 8 juvenile and sub-adult Micrommata virescens were found in moth traps set in Three Groves Wood, in Chalford, Gloucestershire. - LINK. On 24th May 2022 an adult male Micrommata virescens was found underneath a sheet, that had been placed beneath a moth trap, on the Bathurst Estate near Cirencester, Gloucestershire. This adult male may have been hunting or it may have been searching for a female mating partner. - LINK. There's also an example of a female Micrommata ligurina being found in a moth trap in SW France on 31st November 2018. - LINK

Micrommata virescens in other countries.

Outside of the UK Micrommata virescens is also found in parts of Europe, Turkey, Caucasus, Russia, Iran, Central Asia, China, Korea, and Japan.

In Ireland Micrommata virescens is considered to be rare and is primarily found in the southwest, specifically in Killarney National Park. Some records have also come from parts of County Cork and South Tipperary. A gravid adult female specimen was photographed in South Tipperary, in southern Ireland, as it climbed upon an Oak sapling, looking to build its brooding retreat. - LINK.

In Germany Micrommata virescens is called the “Grüne huschspinne” which translates to the wonderful colloquial name of the “Green Whoosh Spider”, due to their incredible bursts of sudden speed, when hunting or escaping from a potential predator. They are sometimes also known as the Green Swift Spider. In 2004 Germany declared "Micrommata virescens" as their "spider of the year" to raise awareness of this scarce species and to promote public sympathy for spiders. - LINK

In Italy Micrommata virescens is sometimes known as the Green Meadow Hunter.

In Sweden, where Micrommata virescens is the only Huntsman species, it is known as the Green Leaf Spider, Gröna bladspindeln. Sometimes it is simply known as the "Jättekrabbspindel" which refers to all Huntsman species.

In Spain Micrommata virescens is known as “Araña verde”. Spain also has Micrommata ligurina, and Micrommata aljibica, which is an endemic species to southern Spain.

In France Micrommata virescens is usually known as either the Green Huntsman Spider "Araignée-chasseuse verte" or the Emerald Spider "Micrommate émeraude / Araignée émeraude".

In Denmark Micrommata virescens is known as the Emerald Spider

In Finland, where Micrommata virescens is the only Huntsman species, it is known as Viherjahdikki or Viherhämähäkki, the Green-tailed Hawk or the Green Hunting Spider.

In Belgium Micrommata virescens is known as Мікрамата зеленаватая, the Greenish Micromat. Or sometimes Мікрамата ружавая, the Pink Micromat, which must be a reference to the red colouration of the flanks of the adult male's abdomen.

Are Green Huntsman Spiders Dangerous to Humans?

No, Green Huntsman spiders are completely harmless to humans. Whilst anything with jaws is potentially capable of biting Micrommata species are not inclined to bite humans, even when carefully handled. Instead they rely strongly on their speed and agility to escape. I have never heard of anyone ever being bitten by any Micrommata species, anywhere in the world, but the venom of Micrommata species is of no consequence to humans even if the spiders were to bite. Having personally handled Green Huntsman spiders on dozens of occasions myself none have ever displayed any defensive behaviour at all, other than to try and escape.

Green Huntsman habitat, Ashdown Forest, Sussex, May 2025.

My search for the Green Huntsman

Ashdown Forest is a huge site in Sussex, and is a mixture of heathland, woodland and open grassland. Even though I knew that the Green Huntsman was known to be established at parts of Ashdown Forest I had searched the site in vain for two years, hoping to find this species. I visited the site over a dozen times, and searched various parts of Ashdown Forest, but failed to find this elusive spider on any of my visits during 2023 and 2024. Eventually on the 6th May 2025 I finally found a 10mm sub-adult female specimen, perched on heather, that was growing in an open, wooded section of the forest. Unfortunately the spider was looking a little worse for wear and had clearly been in a confrontation with a predator, or maybe a prey specimen that had valiantly fought back. As a result it was missing two front legs and a pedipalp. I realised that if the spider was immature, and if it had long enough before its next moult, then there was a good chance that it would be able to regenerate its missing limbs, at least to some degree. I decided to take the spider into captivity for a while and see if it would be able to recover, and repair itself, if fed well.

Despite the spider's obvious handicaps this Green Huntsman still proved quite capable of hunting and catching prey, including live crickets and flies that I introduced into the spacious enclosure. After four weeks in captivity the spider had faired rather well and eventually moulted. During that time the spider had been able to regenerate the missing limbs, and missing pedipalp, to some extent. Unfortunately the replacement limbs were considerably shorter than the spider's original limbs but the spider managed just fine on them. The spider had obviously lost its missing legs too late in the spider's moulting cycle for it to have time to fully regenerate the missing legs to their full length. Other than its slightly larger size, and the shorter newly regenerated limbs, the female Micrommata virescens hadn't really changed much in its appearance since moulting. This confirms that both sub-adult female and adult female Green Huntsman spiders cannot be easily distinguished without a close look at the female's epigyne. At this point I decided to return to Ashdown Forest and release the spider back into the wild so it could find a mating partner.

On the 14th May I returned to exactly the same spot where the spider was originally found, and the spider was released back onto the exact clump of heather where it originated from. I had hoped to take some shots of the spider on the heather but once out of its pot it wasted no time in making a dash for its freedom, and didn't stick around for long enough to be photographed. Whilst there I thought I would try my luck once again and see if I could find another, more photogenic and complete, specimen, and maybe even a male specimen too.

I carefully checked through the heather and was delighted to find another female specimen on the same heather bush. This one was slightly larger than the one that had just been released and measured 11mm. More importantly this female specimen still had all its limbs. I continued my search in the immediate vicinity and soon found another 10mm specimen, just 3ft from the first, on another nearby heather bush. It wasn't until I started taking photos that I realised that this time I'd found myself a sub-adult male specimen. Juvenile and sub-adult males and females both look very similar, and usually cannot easily be distinguished. Apart from noticing the slight palpal bulb on the sub-adult male specimen the next difference was the slight variation in the shade of the male. The abdomen was the same bright, almost luminescent green as the female, but the cephalothorax and the legs were slightly darker in shade than the female, and overall the spider had a slightly less translucent appearance. As if finding two Green Huntsmen wasn't enough for me I then went on to find a third specimen a little latter on. This one was another sub-adult female, of around 10mm in length, and was also found on heather, about 20-30ft from the other two.

10mm sub-adult female Green Huntsman, Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 6th April 2025.

My first ever Green Huntsman find. This rather pale, sub-adult female specimen, had two missing legs and a missing pedipalp. Depending on how long ago she lost the missing limbs she may not have time to fully regenerate them before her final moult.

10mm sub-adult female Green Huntsman, Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 6th April 2025.

The genus name, Micrommata, actually means "with small eyes", and refers to the spider's 8 small black eyes, that are encircled by tiny white hairs.

10mm sub-adult female Green Huntsman, Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 6th April 2025.

10mm sub-adult male Green Huntsman. Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 14th May 2025.

11mm female Green Huntsman. Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 14th May 2025.

10mm sub-adult male Green Huntsman. Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 14th May 2025.

11mm female Green Huntsman on Heather at Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 14th May 2025

10mm sub-adult female Green Huntsman on Bracken. Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 14th May 2025.

This Green Huntsman was perched on Bracken, next to a parasitic Deer Tick, Ixodes scapularis. Ixodes scapularis are highly numerous at Ashdown Forest. I observed many of these small Deer Ticks on both Bracken and Heather, and found three specimens on my arm in a single visit to Ashdown Forest in May 2025.

10mm sub-adult female Green Huntsman on Bracken. Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 14th May 2025.

10mm adult male Green Huntsman, 3 days after final moult, 23rd May 2025.

The sub-adult male Green Huntsman was taken into captivity until it reached maturity, before being released once again at Ashdown Forest. On the 20th May the male shed its exoskeleton for the last time and reached maturity. I was surprised to notice that the newly matured male specimen was still entirely green. It lacked the red / brown abdominal median stripe and reddish flanks typically associated with mature male specimens, and its abdomen was still green rather than yellow. A close up look at the pedipalps revealed fully developed palpal bulbs, confirming that this was now definitely a mature male. The palpal bulbs were also still green in colour, rather than dark brown.

The mature male remained as it looks in these photos for two days after reaching maturity. Gradually the male's abdomen then started taking on its yellow and red colouration. One week after reaching maturity the dark green median stripe on the spider's abdomen started turning red at the cephalothorax end. The rest of the stripe turned red within a couple more days. The pedipalps now showed dark brown palpal bulbs. The overall bright green colouration of the spider dulled and took on a dirty green appearance. By the 31st May, 11 days after reaching maturity, the male now had reddish-brown abdominal flanks and the median stripe was now bright red.

10mm adult male Green Huntsman, 3 days after final moult, 23rd May 2025.

10mm adult male Green Huntsman, 8 days after final moult, 23rd May 2025.

10mm adult male Green Huntsman, 16 days after final moult, 1st June 2025.

10mm adult male Green Huntsman on Bracken. Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 8th June 2025.

13mm adult female Green Huntsman on grazed grass in Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 8th June 2025.

This adult female specimen was left undisturbed to show its natural ambush position. The spider waits motionless, facing downwards, on vegetation about 50cm from the ground. Any invertebrates that wander beneath the spider are pounced on at great speed by the Green Huntsman. This specimen was found on grass, growing in the middle of bracken, less than 3ft away from a juvenile Bog Raft Spider. The smaller Raft Spider would stand no chance against the speed and agility of the Huntsman, should the two species cross paths. Once fully grown though the Raft Spider would be considerably larger than the Green Huntsman, and I suspect the Huntsman would be very wary of tackling a spider of that size.

Green Huntsman spiders, filmed at East Sussex, during 2025 & 2026.

10mm sub-adult female Green Huntsman. May 2025.

10mm adult male Green Huntsman. June 2025.

2nd or 3rd instar 2.5mm Green Huntsman spiderling on Bracken at Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 10th August 2025.

During June and July I paid several visits to Ashdown Forest searching for Micrommata virescens, and hoping to find an adult female Green Huntsman hidden away in her retreat with an an egg-sac, or better still with her newly hatched spiderlings. Unfortunately despite my searching I failed to find exactly what I was after. I wasn't able to visit the site towards the end of July or at the start of August either. It seems I was a couple of weeks too late by the time I visited again on 10th August as the spiderlings had already dispersed. I was able to find half a dozen of these tiny 2.5mm spiderlings on Bracken though. They varied in colour from very pale green to pale brown, as well as this beautiful red & green coloured specimen. For their size the speed and agility of these 2.5mm spiderlings was absolutely incredible, and far exceeded that of any other similarly sized spider I have ever photographed. These spiderlings were probably between 2-4 weeks old at this stage. Throughout 2025 I was lucky enough to find more than a dozen Micrommata virescens in total. All were found on vegetation and a height of between 1-3ft above the ground. Most of these were found at around 2ft above ground level.

Another 2nd or 3rd instar 2.5mm Green Huntsman spiderling found on Bracken at Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 10th August 2025.

4mm (9 week old) female Green Huntsman spiderling, Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 9th September 2025. Specimen 1.

At 4mm in length the spiderlings were now 6-8 weeks of age and varied considerably in appearance. Some were still looking fairly similar to their appearance 4 weeks prior, whilst others were starting to resemble miniatures of the adult and sub-adult specimens. At this stage the sex could not be determined, but later in its life this specimen was identified as a female.

4mm (9 week old) Green Huntsman spiderling, Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 9th September 2025. Specimen 2.

4mm (9 week old) Green Huntsman spiderling, Ashdown Forest, Sussex, 9th September 2025. Specimen 3.

5mm (19 week old) juvenile Green Huntsman. 27th November 2025. Specimen 1.

At four and a half months of age the Green Huntsman spiderlings still measured just 5mm, and were growing very slowly. 10 weeks previous to this photo being taken this young specimen was entirely green in colour. After moulting it developed the red spots and red markings on its abdomen that had been present on its siblings since they were just two weeks old.

5mm (19 week old) juvenile Green Huntsman. 27th November 2025. Specimen 2.

Despite some claims to the contrary Micrommata virescens do not have the ability to change their colour. The colour of these young spiders is not affected or influenced by their environment either. All three young spiderlings were collected at the same time, from the same bracken plant. All three specimens showed considerable variation in colour from one another right from the start. Whilst being raised in captivity all three were kept in identical enclosures, with identical surroundings, and fed the exact same diet. One can clearly see that the differences in appearance between these specimens are just a demonstration of the variation in colour that this species can exhibit as a juvenile.

5mm (19 week old) juvenile Green Huntsman. 27th November 2025. Specimen 3.

9mm (25 week old) juvenile female Green Huntsman. 1st January 2026. Specimen 1.

9mm (29 week old) juvenile female Green Huntsman. 26th January 2026. Specimen 1.

In the space of less than 4 weeks, between January 1st and January 26th, this juvenile Green Huntsman changed considerably in colour, from pale green to a pale brown. The abdomen still retained some of the green colouration though.

9mm (29 week old) juvenile female Green Huntsman. 26th January 2026. Specimen 1.

7mm (26 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman. 11th January 2026. Specimen 3.

At around six months of age, on 11th January 2026, the palpal bulbs became visible on two of the three juvenile Green Huntsman spiders. At this stage two of the juveniles could be confirmed as male specimens. Raising these Micrommata virescens juveniles has confirmed some facts.

1. All newly hatched Green Huntsman spiderlings are entirely green in colour, just like the eggs they came from.

2. After the spiderlings moult and disperse the juvenile Green Huntsman can be found in an array of different shades of green and brown, or a combination of both colours.

3. The colour of the juvenile specimen, whether green or brown, has no correlation to the sex of the young spider.

4. There is no way to differentiate between male and female juvenile specimens until the palpal bulbs of the young males become visible, which is when the spiders reach around 6 months of age.

5. The colour of the spider's environment has no direct effect on the colour of the spider. The young spiders automatically change colour throughout the seasons.

7mm (26 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman. 11th January 2026. Specimen 3.

7mm (26 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman. 12th January 2026. Specimen 2.

9mm (28 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman. 17th February 2026. Specimen 2.

At 30 weeks of age the palpal bulbs of this young male Micrommata virescens are starting to take shape and are quite obvious to the eye.

9mm (28 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman. 17th February 2026. Specimen 2.

9mm (28 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman. 11th February 2026. Specimen 2.

9mm (29 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman. 22nd February 2026. Specimen 3.

At 29 weeks old this juvenile male Micrommata virescens has still retained a hint of green colouration. The feint green can be seen on the sides, and on the dorsal stripe, of the abdomen. As with the other two juvenile specimens the overall colour of the spider is a light tan, with an abundance of tiny red spots.

9mm (29 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman. 22nd February 2026. Specimen 3.

10mm (29 week old) juvenile female Green Huntsman. 26th February 2026. Specimen 1.

At this stage the female was slightly larger than either of her male siblings.

10mm (29 week old) juvenile female Green Huntsman. 26th February 2026. Specimen 1.

11mm (33 week old) juvenile female Green Huntsman. 23rd March 2026. Specimen 1.

exuvia from the 11mm (41 week old) sub-adult female Green Huntsman. 24th May 2026. Specimen 1.

On 24th May 2025 the juvenile female shed its skin. The spider increased slightly size, with a body-length now of around 12mm. It also retained its light tan colouration. From the old exuvia we can see that the spider retained all the tiny white hairs around its eyes, even up until it moulted.

12mm (43 week old) sub-adult female Green Huntsman. 5th June 2026. Specimen 1.

Within just 3 days of moulting the sub-adult female had gradually changed from a light tan colour to a very pale green colour. Within 10 days of moulting the sub-adult female was now bright green, almost as vivid in colour as the adult specimens. This change to a complete green colour came far earlier than I had expected, or read about, at just 43 weeks of age.

On 18th June, just a little over two weeks after her last moult, the female moulted again. This time, to my complete surprise, the 45 week old female had reached maturity. Proving that captive-reared specimens, which are not cooled and over-wintered during the colder months, can reach maturity in well under a year.

10mm adult male Green Huntsman. East Sussex. 14th June 2026.

12mm (46 week old) sub-adult female Green Huntsman. 23rd June 2026. Specimen 1.

Micrommata virescens Mating

23rd June 2026 18:00 - The adult male was introduced to the captive-raised, 46 week-old, adult female’s enclosure.

18:10 - The male remained in vegetation at the top of the enclosure, whilst the female remained near the bottom, on the opposite side. The male had kept his distance from the female but seemed to be drumming on the vegetation with his front legs.

18:37 - The male started making his way down the vegetation, towards the female. Whilst approaching the female his drumming was now very obvious. He was frantically tapping the vegetation with wild movements of his front legs.

18:38 - When the male was about 3cm away from the female she leapt on top of the male, as if she was catching her prey. The pair ferociously tussled for a few seconds, before the female released her hold and the male moved underneath her. Whilst positioning himself his front legs continued strumming on the rear end of the female’s abdomen. After a couple more minutes both spiders became relaxed and the male spider moved to the side and back of the female to transfer his sperm.

21:30 - The spiders remained joined together until 9:30pm. After that the male climbed down from the female and she immediately tried to grab hold of him. The female then chased the male around the enclosure at great speed. This repeated several times, with the female seemingly giving up the chase, only to continue chasing him again a couple of minutes later.

21:40 - At this stage I felt sorry for the male and allowed him to escape from the female's predation. The male went back into his own enclosure. It would have been better for the health of the female, and for the development of her eggs, if I had allowed her to eventually catch, kill and feed on the male. However I decided that if the male continued to live long enough then I would release him back into the wild, where he might have the opportunity to mate with another female.

10mm (41 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman, Specimen 3, shedding its skin. 28th May 2026.

On the 28th May 2026 this sub-adult male, Specimen 3, shed its skin. The spider seemed to retain its light tan colouration, and the red spots on both its abdomen and its legs. Unfortunately these were the last photos I was able to take of this male Green Huntsman, and the end of my study on this specimen. The following day I was incredibly disappointed to discover that the spider had died, still attached to its old exuvia. The spider had what's termed as a "bad moult". It was unable to free itself from its old skin and had died of exhaustion trying. What I should have done when I first noticed the spider beginning to shed its skin was to lightly mist both the inside of its enclosure, and the spider itself, with water. This may have softened the old skin and made it easier for the spider to free itself. In the wild Micrommata virescens live in damp meadows and clearly need the humidity. Lesson learned for the future.

10mm (41 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman, Specimen 3, shedding its skin. 28th May 2026.

exuvia from the 10mm (43 week old) juvenile male Green Huntsman, Specimen 2. 3rd June 2026.

On 3rd June 2026 the sub-adult male Micrommata virescens also shed its skin. To avoid making the same mistake as last time I started gently misting the spider's enclosure as soon as I noticed the spider was moulting. The spider seemed to survive the moult in good health. As with the old exuvias from previous moults, and from other Micrommata virescens exuvias, we can see that the spider retained all the tiny white hairs around its eyes, even up until it moulted.

10mm (43 week old) male Green Huntsman, Specimen 2. 5th June 2026.

As with specimen 3 the new exoskeleton of Specimen 2 also seemed to retain its light tan colouration, and the red spots on both its abdomen and its legs. What was interesting was two days after the moult there were two subtle patches of green colouration starting to develop on legs 1 and 2 on the left side of the spider.

10mm (43 week old) male Green Huntsman, Specimen 2. 5th June 2026.

10mm (44 week old) male Green Huntsman, Specimen 2. 13th June 2026

12mm sub-adult female Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens. East Sussex. 19th April 2026.

16mm adult female Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens. East Sussex. 14th June 2026.

My most successful day of searching for Green Huntsman spiders yet. On the 14th June 2026 I managed to find 2 adult female specimens, two adult male specimens, and four juvenile specimens, that were only 3-5mm in length. The temperature was 21 degrees, there was no wind, and the sky had around 20% cloud cover. There had been light rain on the previous night. They were found on heather, in grass, and on bracken.

16mm adult female Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens. East Sussex. 14th June 2026.

A clear shot of the distinctive, large and black epigyne of the adult female Micrommata virescens.

16mm adult female Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens. East Sussex. 14th June 2026.

Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens, egg-sac. 19th June 2026.

In the early hours of the morning, on 19th June, the female Green Huntsman produced her egg-sac, containing well over 50 green eggs, bound together by white silken threads. The egg-sac measured about 10mm in diameter.

0.8mm - 1mm newly hatched Green Huntsman spiderlings, Micrommata virescens, 30th June 2026.

11 days after the eggs were laid, and following a lengthy heat-wave of 30+ degrees, I noticed movement within the egg-sac. Using a razor blade I carefully made a tiny incision in the top of the egg-sac. Almost immediately the spiderlings came rushing out of the tiny hole and gathered themselves on the outside of the egg-sac. I attempted to count the spiderlings but this proved to be an impossible task. It's often quoted that the typical egg-sac of Micrommata virescens contains around 40-50 eggs. This must have been a particularly successful egg-sac as from my attempts to count the number of spiderlings I estimate that there were around 70-80 spiderlings from this egg-sac, ranging in size from about 0.8mm to 1mm in body-length. These first instar hatchlings have fairly short, stocky legs for Micrommata species. They also lack the white hairs that typically encircle the eyes too.

0.8mm - 1mm newly hatched Green Huntsman spiderlings, Micrommata virescens, 1st July 2026.

Once all the spiderlings had exited, and gathered around the outside of the egg-sac, they lived the first few days of their lives in a rather sedentary state. Apart from the occasional jostling for position the spiderlings remained perfectly still for the majority of their time, unless disturbed.

0.8mm - 1mm newly hatched Green Huntsman spiderlings, Micrommata virescens, 1st July 2026.

Adult female Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens, with her newly hatched spiderlings. 1st July 2026.

0.8mm - 1mm newly hatched Green Huntsman spiderlings, Micrommata virescens, 1st July 2026.

A very short video of the newly hatched Green Huntsman spiderlings, as they jostle for position around the outside of the egg-sac from which they just emerged.

1.5mm, 4 - 7 day old Micrommata virescens spiderling. 4th July 2026

Just four days after emerging from the egg-sac around half of the spiderlings had moulted and were ready to disperse. These spiderlings may have hatched up to three days before I opened the egg-sac so they were between 4-7 days old. At this stage the half of the spiderlings which had moulted, had now walked away from the egg-sac, where the other half of the spiderlings remained huddled together, and were wandering around the enclosure. The second instar spiderlings measured around 1mm - 1.5mm in body-length. At this stage the spiderlings had changed their appearance considerably. They were now very pale green, quite translucent, and had developed slightly long-legged proportions, that we usually associate with Micrommata species. The second instar spiderlings now exhibited the white hairs, that encircle each of their eyes.

1.2mm, 4 - 7 day old Micrommata virescens spiderling. 4th July 2026

Micrommata virescens abandoned egg-sac, with the spiderlings cast off old skins. 5th July 2026.

By the next day, on 5th July 2026, five days after exiting the egg-sac, all the spiderlings had now moulted and had abandoned the egg-sac completely. The remains of the abandoned egg-sac was littered with the old exoskeletons from the spiderlings first moult. In stark contrast to the L1 spiderlings the L2 spiderlings were now very active and very fast. At this stage I decided to release all 80 spiderlings back to the exact spot where I had captured their parents in 2025. The spiderlings were spread over the top of a large clump of heather and bracken and they were quick to disappear into the vegetation. Upon returning home I discovered that two of the spiderlings were still in the pot that had previously contained all 80. I decided to raise these two in captivity for a while.

1mm, 5 - 8 day old Micrommata virescens spiderling. 5th July 2026

On 5th July 2026 the adult female Green Huntsman produced a second egg-sac in captivity. This egg-sac was smaller than the first and measured about 8mm across. I estimate that this second egg-sac probably contained about 30 eggs. Once the egg-sac was produced the female gradually built up a webbed retreat around the egg-sac. Despite being offered live prey, in the form of Green Houseflies, the spider did not leave its retreat to feed. It did drink though when I sprayed water onto the webbing of the retreat.

By the 13th July 2026 the female still hadn't left the retreat to feed. At this stage I made a small tear in the webbing and placed a live fly into the retreat of the spider. Instead of grabbing hold of the fly the spider seemed to be pushing the fly away with its legs. Eventually the spider bit the fly, without grabbing hold of it, and the spider fell from the retreat. The spider did not pursue its potential meal though. I thought this might have been an accident so I tried a second fly. This time I held onto the fly, using a pair of tweezers, and slowly pushed the fly towards the spider. The spider bit the fly several times, but still made no attempt to grab hold of the fly. It was clear that the spider was just defending its eggs and had no interest in feeding upon the fly.

2mm, 27 day old Micrommata virescens L2 spiderling. 24th July 2026

On the 20th July 2026, at around 23 days old, the two L2 spiderlings, that were not released back into the wild, finally caught and fed upon tiny flightless fruit-flies. This was the first time that I had witnessed the spiderlings feed. Even when all 80 spiderlings were kept together I didn't witness any cannibalism between them. The spiderlings fed upon the fruit-flies for several hours. By the time that had finished feeding both spiderlings had changed from pale green to a more reddish colour. Both spiderlings were still very translucent.

2.5mm, 30 day old Micrommata virescens L3 spiderling. 27th July 2026

On the 26th July 2026 the Green Huntsman spiderling moulted. It now measured approximately 2.5mm in body-length. It was once again greener in colour and still retained its translucent appearance.

Adult female Micrommata virescens with eggs from her second brood. 22nd July 2026.

On the 12th July 2026 the first of the eggs hatched from the females second clutch. On the 14th July 2026 I noticed that the female had removed the majority of the eggs from the egg-sac and began to move them around, and reposition them, within her brood chamber. Sometimes she would bundle some of the eggs up and carry them around in her jaws. Other times the bundle of eggs were carried around attached to her spinnerets. Over the next few days the female seems to accidentally drop several of her eggs whilst carrying them around, and there were now eggs spread throughout her brood chamber. Several times I saw the female exit her brood chamber and walk around her enclosure. She still showed no interest in feeding though. After a wander she would return to her brood chamber and sit on the outside for some time. After not feeding for quite some time her abdomen now looked almost completely yellow in colour. Eventually she would always return to within the brood chamber, and start moving the eggs around again.

On the 22nd July 2026, 10 days since the first of the eggs from this clutch had hatched, and still none of the other eggs were showing any signs that they were ready to hatch. I started to suspect that the majority of this second brood may have been unfertilised. At this stage I decided to open up her brood chamber and take some photos.

Upon opening up her brood chamber I quickly realised that the majority of the eggs weren't fastened to anything, and many of the rolled away. The female panicked and ran to the outside of her chamber. I quickly gathered up all the loose eggs and returned them to within the chamber. This gave me the opportunity to count the eggs. There were 38 eggs in total, plus one had already hatched, making the total number of eggs originally in this clutch 39. Once the eggs had been returned the female re-entered the chamber and sat over the top of her eggs. After taking a few photos the female began to pick up two of the loose eggs with her jaws. I thought she was going to gather the remaining few eggs, which were littered about the webbing of her chamber. Instead she began eating the two loose eggs. Watching closely through the viewfinder of my camera it appeared that the eggs she was feeding on contained no spiderlings within. It's not clear if she ate the eggs because she was stressed or if she knew that the eggs were empty. In case she was eating the eggs due to stress I decided to cover her up again, to the best of my ability, and leave her to take care of the remaining eggs.

Adult female Micrommata virescens gathering her loose eggs, from her second brood. 22nd July 2026.

Adult female Micrommata virescens gaurding eggs, from her second brood. 22nd July 2026.

Adult female Micrommata virescens eating two of her loose, infertile eggs, from her second brood. 22nd July 2026.

Adult female Micrommata virescens feeding on a housefly for the first time since she produced her second egg-sac. 23rd July 2026.

The next day, on the 23rd July 2026, I noticed that one more of the eggs had finally hatched. I had my doubts that many more would hatch successfully though. The adult female walked away from the remaining unhatched eggs and rested on foliage on the other side of the enclosure. I felt this might be a good time to she if she her appetite had returned, now that she was no longer guarding the eggs. I introduced a large housefly into the enclosure and within a minute or two the spider had stalked the fly and pounced upon it. She continued feeding from the fly for the next 2 hours. This saw the return of the female's appetite. She fed vivaciously on any prey that I introduced into her enclosure. I had expected to have an enclosure full of tiny spiderlings by this stage so in preparation I had introduced a colony of tiny flightless fruit-flies into the enclosure. The flies hatched quickly and soon filled the enclosure. Despite their tiny size the adult Green Huntsman fed on these little flies continuously. She immediately grabbed anything that moved. Unfortunately I suspect this may have included the only two Green Huntsman spiderlings that had hatched. They quickly moulted and began wandering around the enclosure. At this stage I should have relocated them into their own enclosures, and removed them from the presence of their mother. The spiderlings soon disappeared and I suspect that the mother had accidentally eaten them.

The adult female's abdomen soon returned to its fuller shape. By 28th July 2026 its abdomen had once again changed colour. Instead of being bright yellow the abdomen was now a dullish, green, with a slight hint of brown. With her abdomen now looking rather plump again I began to hope that the female might actually build herself a third egg-sac.

10-12 month old, 3.5mm juvenile Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens. East Sussex. 14th June 2026.

This small juvenile was one of four specimens found at East Sussex on the 14th June 2026. These juveniles would have hatched from their eggs in the summer of 2025. They ranged in body-length from 3-5mm, and all had their bright green colouration. There is a considerable difference in size and colour of these specimens compared to those that I raised in captivity. The specimens raised in captivity were at least twice this size by the time they reached this age. Those raised in captivity retained the tan colouration, and red spots, at this size too.

10-12 month old, 4mm juvenile Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens. East Sussex. 14th June 2026.

10-12 month old, 5mm juvenile Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens. East Sussex. 14th June 2026.

10mm adult male Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens. East Sussex. 5th July 2026.

12mm adult female Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens, with brooding retreat. East Sussex. 5th July 2026.

This retreat was constructed in Bracken, at a height of around 50cm above ground level. The adult female Green Huntsman does not usually exit the egg-sac until the spiderlings have dispersed, unless she is disturbed, as seen in these photos.

12mm adult female Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens, with brooding retreat. East Sussex. 5th July 2026.

Sites In The UK Where Micrommata virescens Have Been Recorded.

Swinley Forest, Windlesham. Surrey. - LINK

Denge Wood, Kent. (Park in Pennypot Lane and make your way to Bonsai bank)

Wych Cross. Ashdown Forest, East Sussex.

Blean Woods, Kent. (see page 19).

West Blean & Thornton Woods, Canterbury. Kent. 51.33079, 1.09495

Wyre Forest. Worcestershire.

Pinchley Wood, Gloucestershire.

East Wood, Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire.

Stoneycroft, not too far from Newsham Park, in Liverpool.

Hothfield Heathlands Nature Reserve, Ashford. Kent.

Yew Tree Farm, Pembury, Tonbridge, Kent.

Bovey Valley Woods, Dartmoor, Devon. (see page 8)

East Dartmoor National Nature Reserve, Bovey Tracey, Newton Abbot TQ13 9LJ, 50.60374, -3.72414

Bracknell Forest, Berkshire. 51.37142, -0.75434

New Forest National Park, Hampshire. 50.85042, -1.62650

Ashdown Forest, East Sussex, 51°05'01.0"N, 0°00'52.3"E / and at 51.05929, 0.08200 / 51.05923, 0.09232 / 51.05554, 0.08623 / 51.05572, 0.09445 / 51.07660, 0.05281

Boughton Aluph, Ashford TN25 4AP, Lat/Lon: 51.21326, 0.90681

Chartham, Canterbury CT4, 51.2308, 1.01506 / 51.23079, 1.01503

Surrey Heath, 51.35401, -0.74208

iNaturalist records for Micrommata virescens - LINK

The SRS map showing the national distribution of Micrommata virescens can be found here.

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Other Green Huntsman Species.

In the UK Micrommata virescens is the only species of Huntsman spider established but there are also two very similar, and closely related Green Huntsman species found in Europe, Micrommata ligurina and Micrommata formosa. Neither of these species are found in the UK, but they are both found in parts of the Mediterranean, southern Europe, North Africa and parts of the Middle-East. There is also another species form the MIcrommata genus found in Turkey, Micrommata biggi. Micrommata biggi is a pale tan colour though and is not known to be found in a green colour.

Micrommata ligurina and Micrommata formosa can both be distinguished from our native Micrommata virescens by the presence of a small black dot near the centre of their carapace (cephalothorax). This black dot is usually pretty obvious but it can on occasion be quite subtle on some specimens.

Like our native Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens, adult female Micrommata ligurina are usually bright green in colour, with a feint median stripe, but they can also sometimes be found in the light brown colouration that's more typically associated with juvenile specimens. LINK 1. Adult males typically have a brownish-green carapace, and a brownish-grey abdomen. In its native countries Micrommata ligurina is sometimes known as the Green Grass Spider, or the Green Prairie Spider.

Micrommata formosa, sometimes known as the Grass Huntsman Spider, often exhibits a dark median line on the dorsal face of the prosoma, which looks like a continuation of the dark abdominal line. This species is quite variable in colour and it's not unusual for Micrommata formosa to remain brown in colour even through to maturity. Micrommata formosa and Micrommata ligurina are both slightly smaller than our native Micrommata virescens, with male Micrommata formosa typically reaching 6.5 - 8mm in body-length and the females typically reaching 9 - 12.5mm. - LINK. Male Micrommata ligurina typically reach 8mm in body-length and the females typically reaching 10mm. - LINK

In parts of Asia, specifically Taiwan, India, Malaysia and Singapore, there are several species of Huntsman spider, from the Ghanthopalystes genus, that can also be found in a variety of colours, including bright green: LINK 1 LINK 2 LINK 3 LINK 4

Accidental Imports

Green Huntsman spiders occasionally arrive in the UK as accidental stowaways, usually hidden amidst imported fresh produce or plants from Europe. These accidental imports are nearly always the non-native Micrommata ligurina, rather than our native Micrommata virescens. There are a couple of reasons for this. The UK imports significantly more of its salad and fresh produce from Southern Europe than it does from Northern European, particularly from Spain and the Mediterranean regions. This is especially true during winter and spring months. Micrommata virescens has a more northerly distribution than Micrommata ligurina. Micrommata ligurina is primarily found in the warmer Mediterranean/ regions, where we source more of our fresh produce from. Our native Micrommata virescens is found across the Palearctic, including Northern Europe and Britain. Micrommata virescens also seems to have more specific habitat requirements than Micrommata ligurina. Micrommata virescens tends to favour slightly cooler and damper areas than Micrommata ligurina, and is usually encountered in grass meadows and woodland edges. As such Micrommata ligurina is far more likely to be found at sites in Europe where fresh produce is being grown.

One such example of Micrommata ligurina turning up in the UK was on the outside of a residential house in Sidmouth, Devon, on February 14th 2023. - LINK.

Micrommata ligurina turned up near a garden centre in SW London, on 22nd March 2022. - LINK.

An adult female Micrommata ligurina turned up in Wales on 29th March 2023. The Huntsman was found inside a bag of mixed fruit, containing strawberries, raspberries and blueberries, grown in Mexico and Portugal. - LINK.

On 25th December 2025 a sub-adult female Micrommata ligurina turned up in the UK, hidden within the leaves of an imported lettuce from France. This spider had survived for 10 days in the refrigerator, before being released into the person's garden. - LINK.

On 23rd February an adult female Micrommata ligurina turned up in Hartlepool, hidden within imported strawberries from Italy. - LINK

Female Micrommata ligurina and female Micrommata virescens comparison.

10mm female Micrommata ligurina

10mm female, non-native, accidental import, Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 5th February 2026.

This female Green Huntsman was one of two specimens that suddenly appeared in a green grocer's store in West Yorkshire. This specimen was captured by the finder, Katie Samuelson, and photos were shared on Facebook's British Spider ID Group. I then identified the spider as a Green Huntsman, and warned that it was probably the non-native species Micrommata ligurina. Katie then very kindly agreed to send the spider to me so it could be photographed and formally identified. Once this spider arrived with me I was immediately able to identify it as the non-native Micrommata ligurina, rather than our native Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens. As a non-native specimen this spider could not be released into the wild and had to remain in captivity. This specimen has arrived with a minor injury unfortunately. It appears to have a missing pedipalp. It's fairly common for spiders to have missing limbs though. With spring starting slightly earlier in the Mediterranean than it does in the UK Micrommata ligurina specimens mature earlier than our native Micrommata virescens do in the UK. Therefore at this stage it's unclear whether this specimen is mature or still a sub-adult. If this specimen this female Micrommata ligurina is a sub-adult specimen then it should be able to regenerate the missing limb once it next moults and sheds its old exoskeleton. - LINK 1 LINK 2

10mm female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 5th February 2026.

There are a few obvious differences between this non-native Micrommata ligurina specimen and our native Micrommata virescens. The first and most obvious feature is the presence of the dark black spot on the carapace. This dark spot is the most reliable key feature and it is not found on our native Micrommata virescens. The second feature I noticed is the colour. This sub-adult female Micrommata ligurina is not as brightly coloured as our vivid green Micrommata virescens. The colour of this immature female Micrommata ligurina specimen is very similar to the dull green colouration of our native mature male Micrommata virescens. It is possible that this colouration is purely seasonal but I suspect that Micrommata ligurina probably doesn't get as vividly green in colour as our native Micrommata virescens, even in the spring. The last notable feature is the eyes. Our native Micrommata virescens has a circle of bright white hairs around each of the eyes. Whilst there are white hairs around some of the eyes on this Micrommata ligurina they are not nearly as numerous as those present on all the Micrommata virescens specimens that I have ever seen. This Micrommata ligurina also has some black colouration around the base of its eyes, which is not seen on Micrommata virescens. This black colouration around the eyes, and the reduced number of bright white hairs around the eyes, is something I have noticed on a minority of Micrommata ligurina specimens. The majority of Micrommata ligurina specimens lack this black colouration and have white eye-hairs similar to those found on Micrommata virescens. Whilst this is not a reliable feature, when trying to identify the species, it can help to eliminate Micrommata virescens if these black markings are present.

10mm female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 6th February 2026.

10mm female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 17th February 2026.

10mm female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 16th March 2026.

At this stage the female Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina, had become considerably darker in shade, and duller in colour. The ends of her legs had become especially dark. The Micrommata ligurina had also stopped feeding. When flies were placed in her enclosure, and they wandered within striking range, she didn't pounce on, them as she would usually do, but instead she pushed them away with her legs. I hoped that this meant she was about to shed her skin, and have her final moult prior to reaching maturity. I was looking forward to seeing if she managed to fully regenerate her missing pedipalp.

10mm female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 16th March 2026.

It's interesting to note that this Green Huntsman has slowly been losing all the white hairs, that usually surround its eyes, since being in my care. By this stage the spider has almost completely lost all these hairs.

11mm sub-adult female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 17th March 2026.

As I suspected this Green Huntsman shed its skin within 24 hours of the last photos I took of it. It surprised me to find out that the spider was still not fully mature. It now displayed a bright green colour, similar to that of our native Micrommata virescens. And just like our native Micrommata virescens this Micrommata ligurina now had an abundance of bright white hairs surrounding all its eyes. It was pleasing to see that this sub-adult female Micrommata ligurina now had managed to regenerate its missing pedipalp, almost to the same size as the other pedipalp.

11mm sub-adult female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 17th March 2026.

Female Micrommata ligurina's old cast off exuvia, after moulting.17th March 2026.

As the exoskeleton of Micrommata ligurina starts to age they seem to lose the majority of the small white hairs that encircle their eyes. Many of those remaining hairs tend to turn black in colour. The old exoskeleton shows none of these hairs around its eyes, making it particularly unfamiliar to anyone trying to identify it. The freshly sloughed adult female once again has an abundance of these white hairs around her eyes, on her new skin. It seems Micrommata virescens tend to retain these white hairs even as their old skin ages, and don't lose them, or nearly as many of them, as Micrommata ligurina seem to do. This is one of the things that I'm currently investigating.

Ventral side of the sub-adult female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 17th March 2026.

11mm sub-adult female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 23rd March 2026.

Female Micrommata ligurina's old cast off exuvia, after moulting.21st April 2026.

On 21st April 2026 the female Micrommata ligurina shed its skin once again. This female Green Huntsman was now a fully mature adult. A quick measurement of the spider revealed that it hadn't grown in size from the last time it moulted, and was still exactly 11mm in body-length. Once fully mature this female Micrommata ligurina wasn't quite as bright green in shade as it had been during its previous sub-adult phase. It was interesting to note that not only are the adult females entirely green in colour but this Micrommata ligurina was also bright green throughout both of the preceding immature stages too. Another interesting observation was the complete presence of all the white hairs, that surround each of the eight eyes, on the final exuvia, which were totally absent on the previous exuvia.

Left: immature female Micrommata ligurina. Right: newly matured female Micrommata ligurina.

Sub-adult female Micrommata ligurina can be pretty much indistinguishable from adult Micrommata ligurina during their last two immature stages. Very close inspection may reveal very subtle differences, if you're extremely familiar with this species, such as a very slightly longer head shape, and sometimes slight colour variations of the abdomen. Such differences are typically so subtle though that even to experts they're not totally reliable to determine whether a specimen is mature or not. Once a female Micrommata ligurina reaches the stage where she is bright green in colour the only accurate way to determine whether the specimen is fully mature or not is to inspect the ventral side of the spider. With all true spiders the female's reproductive organ, known as the epigyne, only starts to develop as the spider approaches maturity. It is only after her final moult that the newly, fully developed epigyne if visible. In the case of Micrommata species the epigyne is large, broad, and easily visible.

An adult female spider's epigyne differs from one species to another, even within the same genus, and inspection of the epigyne is the most accurate way to identify a specimen to species level. Unfortunately some species, such as the Black Widow spiders, in the Latrodectus genus, require dissection in order to fully view the tiny variations of the epigyne, that are present between different Latrodectus species. Similarly a male spider's reproductive organs, which are located at the tips of their pedipalps, are also unique in shape and design to each species, and are also the best way to identify a specimen to species level. Usually inspection of the epigyne, to accurately determine a species, requires a microscope, or a very powerful lens, but separating our native Green Huntsman, Micrommata virescens, from the non-native Micrommata ligurina is much simpler. The epigyne of our native Micrommata virescens is completely black in colour and can easily be distinguished from that of Micrommata ligurina, just by viewing with the naked eye, even in the field.

Close-up of the adult female Micrommata ligurina's epigyne, 2 days after maturing.

Just a few days after her final moult the epigyne was noticeably darker in shade. In contrast the ventral surface of the female's abdomen, especially the front half, became notably paler in shade. The hairs on the front half of the abdomen became almost white in colour.

11mm adult female Micrommata ligurina. 23rd April 2026.

11mm adult female Micrommata ligurina. 23rd April 2026

8cm web of adult female Micrommata ligurina. 9th June 2026.

Do Green Huntsman Spiders Build Webs?

Green Huntsman Spiders are hunting spiders. As such they do not typically build webs to catch their prey. Green Huntsman either catch their prey by actively stalking, or chasing down their prey, or by using ambush tactics. Whilst all other sources that I have read claim that Green Huntsman Spiders do not build webs, except when adult females are constructing their brood chamber, my own research has found that this may not always be the case.

The female Micrommata ligurina, which I raised in captivity, showed quite strong web-building activity as an adult. I usually changed the cut vegetation, that I kept within her enclosure, every few days. On one occasion, due to being exceptionally busy at the time, I left the cut vegetation in the enclosure, and it didn't get changed for fresh vegetation for a period of 10 days. After 10 days of being in with the spider the vegetation showed clear and obvious webbing. The messy web spanned a distance of around 8cm and its purpose was unclear.

The presence of this web posed several questions. Initially I thought maybe there might be a small Theridiidae in the enclosure with the Green Huntsman. After all this web does look similar to that of Theridiidae species. A thorough inspection of the enclosure, and the vegetation, confirmed that the Green Huntsman was alone in the enclosure, and was therefore the architect of the web. So was this web used to alert the Green Huntsman of approaching prey? Did the web afford the resting spider some degree of protection from other predators? Or is this web just an amass of draglines of silk, that the Green Huntsman has behind her, to help navigate the enclosure and catch herself if she were to fall?

My own theory is that the web was probably built as the foundation strands, within which the female would eventually construct her brood chamber to lay her egg-sac, if she had successfully mated. Even though this female specimen had never been exposed to a male specimen, so there was absolutely zero chance of her being gravid, she had developed a notably swollen abdomen, as if she was full of eggs.

I shared these images on Facebook's "UK Spiders" group and asked if anyone had any thoughts on the matter. I was told by an admin of the group that Micrommata ligurina definitely don't build webs like these, so this web must have been build by a Theridiidae, that was either still hiding in the enclosure, or the female Micrommata ligurina must have eaten the Theridiidae after it constructed the web. This did make me question myself, and whether I could have been wrong about this Green Huntsman building a web. After all it's not something that I've ever seen documented anywhere else before. After the photos were taken the enclosure was thoroughly cleaned out. The old, dead vegetation was discarded and new, fresh foliage was carefully inspected and then placed into the enclosure. Within an hour or two of doing so the non web-building female Micrommata ligurina constructed another web in the enclosure, leaving no doubt at all that she was indeed the architect of the webs.

Female Micrommata ligurina with her replacement web, after the first web was removed from her enclosure. 12th June 2026.

Adult female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 13th June 2026.

This female was measured and found to have a body-length of 14mm. This is far greater than the typical size for Micrommata ligurina. This size is usually only seen with adult female Micrommata virescens. The unusually large size maybe partly down to the spider being raised in captivity, and possibly being fed more often than she would feed in the wild. As well as being noticeably distended the abdomen was also now far darker than it previously been.

Adult female, non-native Green Huntsman, Micrommata ligurina. 13th June 2026.

On 1st July, despite having never had any contact with a male specimen, this adult female Micrommata ligurina had a noticeably distended abdomen. The female constructed a brood chamber, formed within curled leaves, bound together with silk, and hid herself away, as if preparing to lay her egg-sac.

The spider remained hidden away within her brood chamber for the next month. By the 13th July 2026 the spider still hadn't left the brood chamber, and showed no interest in any live prey that I introduced into the enclosure.

Photographs were taken using: Canon 7D mkII camera, Canon 100mm f/2.8L IS Macro lens with Raynox 250 attachment.

& OM System OM-1 mkii camera, OM System M.Zuiko Digital ED 90mm F/3.5 Macro IS PRO Lens, Godox V860iii flash & AK OM-90 Pro diffuser.

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