By Christy Solo – ONPA 1st Place Award Winner for Best Local Column
This week we’ll meet Oregon’s “other” lynx – the western lynx spider (Oxyopes scalaris).
At a teeny 5mm (under one-quarter of an inch) with excellent camouflage, it can be easy to walk right by a western lynx, or two, or three. The rhododendron in my yard in Trail was always home to five or so – each on their own leaf. While western lynx aren’t social spiders, they don’t have a large territory and tolerate other lynx being around.
And yes, all our pictured spiders are the same species. Western lynxes sport a wide range of colors, from deep rusty orange to dark chocolate brown.
What’s in a name? Before we talk about the western lynxes’ patterns, let’s learn about their species name “scalaris.” It comes from the Latin for “of or belonging to a flight of steps or a ladder.” Some of our pictured lynx do have an obvious ladder-like pattern on their abdomens.
On many western lynx that bold, colorful abdomen pattern is hidden beneath a line of white hairs which form a white stripe across their head and all the way down their abdomen.
You can find a boldly colored one and a white-striped one on the same plant. Likewise you can find a mix of orange and brown lynxes on that same plant. Pattern and coloration don’t seem to have any relation to habitat.
Western lynx do sometimes blend in very well with their perch, but often as not they just spend their day out in the open on top of a bright green leaf not blending in at all.
To blend or not to blend? Westerns hunt in a couple different ways, both require good eyesight and speed. They come by their “lynx” moniker honestly as they can go from 0 to “that fly never knew what hit them” in an instant.
Not only can the zip across a leaf at “lynx speed” but they are quite acrobatic and will chase a nice arthropod snack from leaf to leaf, or up and down a flat surface. They are also excellent jumpers and will snag flying insects right out of the air.
As you may have deduced, western lynx don’t have much use for webs and don’t build them.
Females do spin sturdy silk sacs around their eggs, and often (as pictured in the upper left photo) will incorporate foliage around the sac for extra camo and protection.
As spider mothers go, female western lynx are right up there with Charlotte of Charlotte’s Web in the awesome moms ranking.
Once the female has laid and wrapped up her eggs, she will guard them fearlessly until they hatch. Often momma lynx won’t even eat while she guards, and like Charlotte, some will die once their guard duty is done.
Not all however, lynx moms will chow down on any arthropod who threatens her nest and those moms who live will even hang around taking on all predators until the spiderlings are big enough to disperse (about 24 hours after hatching).
Western lynx are active year-round, so you may see one out sunning during our unseasonably warm weather this week.
I’ve never found a western lynx indoors, but if you do, even in winter, cup ‘n paper them outdoors, they are not happy inside.
Typically they really start coming out of hibernation in April and by May you’ll be able to grab a macro lens, your smart phone, or a magnifying glass and get a close look at these beautiful and beneficial spiders.
