Did you know there are things around you that you most likely never or rarely see? They are well camouflaged and barely move.

You most likely have walked past a Green Lynx Spider (Peucetia viridans) many times, and possibly have one or two of them in your own backyard! These bright green spiders blend in so well with foliage that they are very hard to spot, like the one in this observation on iNaturalist: inaturalist.org/observations/95339514. And if they happen to hang out on dryer brown brush, they will adapt and change their abdomen to match the scenery with red or brown colors. This process is not instantaneous, but instead may take a few days.

There’s also the fact that these arachnids are ambush predators and as such, they sit still, waiting for prey to land on a nearby flower or leaf.

There’s no sign of fancy web or other silk trap of any kind. From their spot near the top of the vegetation, they can jump on an unlucky critter or even spit venom at it from two little bristles on their chelicerae (the jaws or “fangs”). And how do we pronounce that?? You just pretend you’re French and you’re going to see your best friend the stingray. Then announce to the world, “hey, I’m going “chez le Sea Ray”. Alright, enough of the French nonsense.

Green Lynx Spiders are not dangerous to humans and are far too good at catching garden pests for you to worry about their presence.

If you are lucky, you might spot mama Green Lynx sitting on her egg sac.

Females do not use their silk to catch prey but instead will tangle soft branches with the sticky strings to create a fortress of sorts. She will then use her silk again to build a half globe adorned with discrete spikes. In that egg sac, she will deposit roughly 200 orange eggs and sit on the flat side of the egg sac, waiting for hatchlings to emerge. Mama Green Lynx will protect the future generation against any predator until they are old enough to wander off and catch their own prey.

For my part, I always consider myself lucky when I spot a Green Lynx Spider. Given the opportunity and since they are fairly sedentary, I will visit her daily until she decides to move on.

Now it’s your turn to spot this garden ghost.

Editor’s note: Patricia Simpson is a trail guide with Mission Trails Regional Park.

Photo credit: Brian Wright CC-by-NC license