Peacock Spider

Peacock spiders are a diverse group of very small jumping spiders native to Australia, celebrated for the extraordinary courtship displays of the males. During courtship, a male raises and fans out modified, often brightly patterned abdominal flaps while waving specialized third legs, performing a synchronized, vibration-accompanied dance to win over a watching female. Dozens of described species exist within the genus Maratus, each with its own combination of colors and display choreography, and new species continue to be discovered and described.

Despite their flamboyant courtship, peacock spiders are minute and easily overlooked outside of the breeding season, spending most of their time hunting small insects among leaf litter, low vegetation, and sandy soil. Their coloration, produced by a combination of pigments and microscopic light-diffracting structures, can shift dramatically depending on viewing angle and lighting.

Because of their tiny size and largely ground-level habits, peacock spiders are most often noticed by dedicated macro photographers and naturalists during the Australian spring and summer, when males are actively searching for and displaying to females.

• Extremely small body, typically only a few millimeters long
• Males of most species have an expandable, often brightly colored and patterned abdominal flap (opisthosoma) used in display
• Coloration varies widely by species, including combinations of red, blue, orange, and iridescent scales; females are usually plain brown or gray
• Large forward-facing principal eyes typical of jumping spiders
• Best identified through observation of the male's courtship dance and specific color pattern, since many species look similar to the naked eye

Peacock spiders live on the ground and in low vegetation across a range of Australian habitats, including sandy heathland, coastal scrub, grassland, and open eucalypt woodland leaf litter. They are found in most Australian states, with particular species diversity in Western Australia and southeastern Australia. Adult activity, including the courtship season, is concentrated in the warmer months of spring through summer.

Like all jumping spiders, peacock spiders hunt visually, stalking and pouncing on small insects and other tiny arthropods encountered in leaf litter and low plants. Their defining behavior is the male courtship display: after detecting a female, a male raises his abdominal flap, extends ornamented legs, and performs a rhythmic dance combined with substrate-borne vibrations, all while the female evaluates him at close range and may reject or accept him. Outside of courtship, peacock spiders are solitary, low-profile ground dwellers that avoid larger predators by staying hidden in debris and vegetation.

Females lay eggs in a small silken nest built under bark, stones, or leaf litter and may guard the sac until spiderlings emerge. Juveniles resemble small, less colorful versions of adults and pass through several molts before reaching maturity, at which point males develop their full color pattern and displaying flap. Most species are active as adults for a single breeding season, with eggs or juveniles overwintering to emerge the following spring.