Ant-mimicking jumping spider, Masoala NP, Madagascar

This was a really cool moment during our trip. It was our third day in Masoala, with another hike in the incredible primary forest. Normally, I'd do such a hike with my 80-400mm zoom, since there is a focus on birds and lemurs, and you need this flexibility. However, since we had already covered the main trophies of this forest earlier (the Red-ruffed lemur and Helmet Vanga) I said to our guide that this day would be a macro day, where we focus on the little stuff.



Pretty soon we discovered this incredible jumping spider that has red and golden colors. Our guide, despite walking this forest for 8 years every single day, didn't even know jumping spiders existed. Given how small they are and due to most tourists focusing on big wildlife, this is no surprise. However, after seeing what incredible creatures they are when magnified, he got this child-like excitement that fueled us for the rest of the walk, despite the rain.



Anyway, this likely is an ant-mimicking jumping spider from the Myrmarachne genus. My reason for thinking this is the lifting of the front leg, which is to mimic the antennae of an ant. This mimicking occurs for two reasons: to disguise as a dangerous ant to be avoided by insect eaters, or to hide behind enemy lines to access food.



This particular specimen is quite beautiful. We discovered it due to the bling. It seems to have golden shiny jaws:







The jaws are huge, which likely means this is a male. Unfortunately, that is where my research ends. I am unable to find the exact species so far, literature online is quite thin.