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Green Crab Spider (Diaea dorsata)
Another wee beastie found on a metal hand rail, this is a small spider (males up to 4mm, females 6-7mm) mostly associated with woodland, where it can be found on bushes, in leaf litter or on trees such as Oak, Box, Yew and various conifers.
The individual in this photo is a female, lacking two longitudinal lines which run along the carapace of the males and brown-tipped palps.
This sighting, in mid-November is a fairly late one. While females are occasionally known to persist through to the autumn (peak months for both sexes being May & June) they usually hibernate under tree bark or similar.
Like the Goldenrod Crab Spider (Misumena vatia) D. dorsata can, over a period of a few days, change its colouring to match its surroundings, although don't expect this individual to turn silver.
In the UK this is generally a southern-based species, where it is widespread.
"Diaea dorsata" is one of the smaller crab spiders, with a palearctic distribution. Females can grow up to 6 mm, males up to 4 mm. Prosoma and legs are green, the opisthosoma is yellowish with a brown mark.
"Diaea dorsata" prefers forest edges. It can be found on oak leaves. The subadults overwinter under the bark of dead trees. Adults appear in May. The males have an extended non-damaging combat ritual: They stand opposed, stretch their front legs and dance around each other. This.. more
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