Running-crab-spiders
Guides
Apollophanes
running crab spiders
Apollophanes is a genus of running crab spiders (family Philodromidae) with a broad geographic distribution spanning Asia, North America, Central America, and South America. The genus was established by Octavius Pickard-Cambridge in 1898 and contains species characterized by distinctive morphological features including a moderately low prosoma with yellow to orange-brown coloration and dark lateral spots, long slender speckled legs, and a conspicuous heart mark on the opisthosoma. The genus has been recorded from habitats ranging from temperate regions to tropical Atlantic rainforest.
Philodromus
Running Crab Spiders
Philodromus is a large genus of running crab spiders in the family Philodromidae, comprising over 200 described species worldwide. Members are characterized by a distinctly flattened body and laterigrade legs—oriented horizontally rather than vertically—that enable sideways movement. Unlike typical crab spiders (Thomisinae), Philodromus species lack heavy bodies and prominent eye tubercles, instead possessing lithe, smooth bodies with slender, nearly equal-length legs. They are active predators of woody plants and are frequently encountered on vertical surfaces including building walls.