Spid-a-boo 2 (Jotus remus)

About a year ago I discovered a previously unknown species of spider, a species with strange paddle-like structures on its third pair of legs. After a while I figured out what these were for, they are used as some kind of lure. I documented that in Spid-a-boo, but despite watching this for hours it didn't become clear why the male was doing it. After several more months I finally managed to capture this footage. Makes sense now ? The male is obviously trying to find a female that does not attack him, that's what all this is about. This spider has been named recently by David Hill and myself, it is now called Jotus remus.
I watched female and males engaging in this way for many hours and regardless of how long the male tried a female that attacked him would not mate. This behaviour is NOT to tire out the female, tiredness plays no role here. The aim is to find a female that is receptive, one that has not yet mated. Instead of chasing the male with his paddle receptive females become calm and placid almost immediately when seeing the male's paddle appearing over the edge of a leaf and it only takes a couple of minutes for them to decide to mate.
Many thanks to Kristin Rule again for producing the sound track, specifically composed and played on the cello for this clip. If you want to see more of what Kristin does, here is her website www.kristinrule...
The clips I used in this video are only a fraction of what I originally shot. You can find many more scenes in my album on Vimeo vimeo.com/show...
For more on my work visit me on Facebook / peacockspider
For licensing inquiries please contact [e-mail]

[@KeithDvorak]

If anyone had told me years ago that I'd find the mating ritual of a spider charming and endearing, I would have mocked them! Beyond wonderful!

[@oldschool6558]

Agree. Their adorable.

[@Mattis_FH]

I love these videos. And their movements. So sharp and quick. And the fact that they are sooo tiny. You are a master of the photpgraphy/filming.

[@Peacockspiderman]

+Mattis Finstad Hansen Thanks for your positive feedback Mattis

[@oscarnathanielnacar7438]

+Peacockspiderman thats some kind of safety attraction to a glutenous women

[@catherinecmccarty6980]

I don't understand your comment and am curious. Care to explain to this old woman?

[@j3ttagrl420]

Catherine McCarty i think he means they check to see how docile the female is before just jumping on her... to see if she's just eat him instead of mating with him! 🤣

[@DespicableBadger]

these videos are absolutely mesmerising

[@hanng1242]

That's what she said.

[@DespicableBadger]

+Han Ng before i put her in a glass and ran outside with her

[@enderstar5017]

+Han Ng I don't get it

[@hanng1242]

+EnderStar501 Because the dance mesmerizes the female such that she mates with the male rather than eating him.

[@enderstar5017]

Han Ng riiiiiiiiiiight....

[@verenachang]

Enchanting - in combination with the music, you choose, this seems to be a kind of strange modern dance theatre, very touching in a way. Thank you for your patience and this beautyful video.

[@KitsunenoHibi]

You discovered a spider? That's so cool! Discovering a new animal must have been so exciting!

[@Blackheathenly]

More than one!

[@TheBeatlesPkmnFan42]

Adorable! Thank you so much for all of your wonderful jumping spider videos! Salticids are my favorite animals, and it's great having access to this amazing footage of them!

[@Brosafex-VoiceOvers]

WOW! JUST WOW! Every single video or image I see of this incredible tiny spider (99% is your footage) just floors me. No wonder you fell in love with them Jurgen. It's not like the Maratus genus has one exclusive behaviour, every single species is so unique in, not only appearance but ritualistic behaviour. Every video that I watch of yours is like a mini movie of drama, suspense, comedy and excitement. I haven't watched all of your videos yet, and I hope you haven't posted one where our colourful little dancer ends up a meal for the girl he's trying to woo. Thank you for your countless hours of patient work and study. You are the leader in the the study and education of this astounding tiny creature.

[@UnagioLucio]

This is certainly one of the stranger courtship rituals in the animal kingdom--a bit like waving a white flag and waiting to see whether you get shot at.

[@kerriegrant6293]

MY FAMILY HAVE ALWAYS CONSiDERED ME ODD, THAT I WONT KILL SPIDERS, they are very useful creatures, and i'd rather put them out than kill them, theyre fascinating. thank you for these wonderful videos of them xx

[@NelsonBigGunP200Fan]

+Kerrie Grant i used to be afraid of them. However jumpers like these are fascinating, and i ended up holding a few that came into my apt. For some reason these dont scare me. They seem so curious, so smart.

[@kerriegrant6293]

***** yes they are fascinating, we tend to underestimate non human creatures, who's instincts are far sharper than ours, we can learn a great deal from the creatures we share our planet with. naturally if a species including spiders are poisonous we have to treat them with the utmost respect. Their poisons are only for self preservation, or hunting food. i'm glad you are getting over your fear of them, because after all, we are giants in comparison to them, so our fears are mainly unfounded. there is beauty in all things, no matter how scary we feel they are

[@MiTmite9]

+Kerrie Grant You are not alone. We spider savers are growing in numbers every day. When I was a young child, my Mother always told us, "You don't bother it and it won't bother you." A wonderful introduction to learning compassion for all creatures. Over the years I have converted many, many people into "Let's just put this little guy outside" spider rescuers. Kerrie, doesn't it feel great to help all animals?

[@MiTmite9]

+Kerrie Grant Your Mom Your Mom: Extremely well said!

[@kerriegrant6293]

MiTmite9 Hi Sweetie, i'm glad to know many more are being educated/converted to preserving creatures rather than killing. If we all respect our mother planet, we would all be healthier in both mind and body. Compassion for other creatures, is vital to the survival of us all, if only the masses knew it. Yes it does it does feel great to help as many animals as possible, and i do this by donations to NAVS> ADI and others, plus i buy 80kg of sun flower seed, 20kg of peanuts, and 400 fat balls, for the wildings that grace my gardens, every winter to take me through the the spring. i also bought a hedgehog house that can accomodate 2 incase a female has a litter, but i dont think my guest is female. i get visited by a fox and a badger, so i never bin any excess foods. i also give my neighbour a share of these seeds to put in their garden. ah such beauty surrounding us, if we just l@@k!:-)

[@Vorpal_Wit]

Great footage, and beautiful music.

[@SensingVitality]

Wow, that was spectacular and the music also-- perfect. What artwork you have made in showcasing these brilliant spiders. I feel like I've been to the ballet. Thank you.

[@vikingtimbo]

Well, mystery solved! My thinking is that the males of many other Jumping Spiders are forced to court a female out in the open, leaving them vulnerable to attack from her the whole time, including at the start of the courtship when the female is still in her usual predatory frame of mind, and therefore dangerous. But the paddles on the males of this species seem to allow the male to court the female from the relative safety of the opposite side of a leaf. Once the male is confident his target has been successfully seduced (having gone through the required routine without being attacked) he can approach her safely. I noticed that this male approached the female in one bold, swift move, with far more confidence than most male Jumping Spiders

[@Peacockspiderman]

+vikingtimbo Excellent analysis ! Indeed, the whole procedure seemed to have the aim at finding a female that would not attack his paddle. And when he was assured, he made his move, quickly. What is remarkable, males can play this game for hours, so there must be cases in which a female that attacks initially can be convinced not to

[@uakarh6406]

+Peacockspiderman one mistake and you're a meal X_X thank God I'm not a male spider)))

[@allencraig02]

So, so amazing. The patience to study and capture these interactions is incredible (and appreciated!) It's SO COOL how many different ways creatures communicate with one another.

[@uakarh6406]

thank you for your amazing job :-) cheers from Ukraine! always waiting for your new videos

[@billb.5183]

YOO HOOOOOO!! Over here! Please don't eat me! ;)

[@lizzyinatizzy6188]

LOL!!! That is exactly how I felt, except I kind of wanted to eat him!! :))

[@SoraThe1WingedAngel]

My god, you are one of my favorite channels on KZbin. Thank you so much for what you do.

[@johnbestevaar372]

Got to admit ,that paddle is fascinating.

[@RaccoonAvatar]

You do such a good job on these videos. I know it must take hours. Glad the boy was successful this time and also managed not to get eaten,.

[@SirEldricIV]

2:48 I discovered a new creature too. The real star of the video was indistinct white speck insect.

[@creepykawaiiunicorn4473]

I hope you know your videos have saved the lives of probably 100 florida jumping spiders. I use to kill them all until I first found your videos and now I can't because YOU MADE THEM CUTE TO ME! I literally just put them outside now instead of spraying them with hair spray or hitting them with a shoe. I still will florida huntsman spiders and roaches no matter what though.

[@dpetty3461]

+SnakeCupcakesxo I am sad you don't see the value in the huntsman spiders. They are great for cockroach control. When I lived in the Tampa Bay area, several lived in my house and they never approached me. They did their thing and I did mine.

[@blacktigerpaw1]

+D Petty There are spiders that eat termites, too, they look like crabs. I keep some spiders around because they kill and eat flies and sometimes bees.

[@Deathbynature89]

This is so wonderful, thankyou for your hours of work to capture this.

[@TheoryTheory2222]

I noticed in both spid-a-boo videos that the male repetitively taps the leaf with its front legs which perhaps stimulates the hairs on the female, whilst he does this and gets the female to stand still he then does the "wave" which in this video is successful , perhaps it is used to grab the females attention, as it seems to be unique from other males and perhaps this is why the female is seduced. also the shape of the display is very neat, and knowing that the spiders have very good colour perception, perhaps he is displaying colours unseeable to us

[@kessler5902]

I'm so happy to see he succeeded and wasn't eaten!

[@trenchdevil]

Einfach nur genial, grandiose Aufnahme.

[@CaptnJackHammer]

Jurgen, always so nice to see your work. Thank you

[@AmbiambiSinistrous]

Thank you for all your hard work and continuing to share this magical little world with us! :)

[@TheoryTheory2222]

WOOOOW!!! THIS IS SOOOO FASCINATING! This is EXACTLY what I wanted to do with my life when I was younger! but unfortunately I live in boring England, wildlife is quite Tame and monotonous :( (WHAT!? YOU DISCOVERED A NEW SPECIES!? INCREDIBLE!!) Thats amazing! your living my dream :D keep it up, i'm subscribed and am eager to see more of this!

[@TerriblePerfection]

Wonderful video, perfect soundtrack. Thank you.

[@lizatanzawa7910]

Tyvm for your exquisite videos!

[@sarzib3246]

Thank you for the wonderful footage. I watch with my daughter and we talk about the imaginary romantic scenario between the two. Absolutely fascinating!

[@vickib4063]

Yet again fascinating to watch him turn her abdomen around to mate.

[@user-un3wr9ri4l]

very good!

[@heartofnova8768]

I propose we call this cutie the squid spider.

[@catherinecmccarty6980]

Your patience must be great, but your research must be very interesting. I hope so, anyway. Thanks for posting these amazing videos.

[@Peacockspiderman]

yes, a bit of patience certainly helps with this. I only do this as my hobby, after I come home from work or on weekends. During the day in my job I identify mites, also arachnids of course, but my work and my peacock spider hobby are not directly linked. It is good fun, and interesting, but leaves little time for anything else

[@TheoryTheory2222]

it's a shame that the journalist reported incorrectly, the ripples of false information could be problematic for you, I hope it gets sorted out :D but i'll be sure to tell many people I know about this channel, IT'S ENLIGHTENING!

[@janedoex8345]

I read that that way the male spider moves his legs ( not the lifted ones ) and causes vibrations on the leaf plays an important role in how to attract a female but it's not known how the female chooses a male. it's said that mostly a male that is equally good in dancing and his rhythm is choosen to mate. though I'm afraid of spiders I find this little ones and the complexity of their rituals pretty interesting.

[@jonathonbattiest4522]

the music in this reminds me of the shining .

[@trucha1618xx]

Marvelous!

[@mlyOKyeah]

Magnificent !!!

[@xSTARR999]

@1:00~ Romeo, Romeo, where forth art thou?

[@larissanoble1845]

So neat!

[@fitbullaussie9002]

Amazing

[@Aninagin]

extremely nice video and camera work! just curious, what lens configuration did you use this time? cheers!

[@Peacockspiderman]

+Mikro Series canon c100 with 100 mm macro

[@Aninagin]

+Peacockspiderman nice depth of field, looks like you had quite a bit of light! awesome footage man

[@noneya8831]

Its for mating right?

[@janedoex8345]

so a female that has already mated will attack, if a male is trying to impress her with his legs and dance , one that has not will stay calm and stay and so it's the males signale she is willing to mate ...am I getting this right?

[@j3ttagrl420]

score?

[@freddyfrediere8275]

A-OY

[@VanDyce]

aren't these just another species of jumping spiders?

[@Peacockspiderman]

correct

[@zepp7777]

вот КАК он догадался , что она готова?

[@matthewwest2588]

What signal did she give that it was okay to come up and mate? Maybe it's hypnosis? :)

[@Peacockspiderman]

+Matthew West simply sitting still

[@TheoryTheory2222]

The ending is very ominous, the way he RAPIDLY waves and then pounces is unlike the other males in your videos. the other males slowly approach and pat the female to make sure she is ready, whereas this male POUNCES, which is unusual. I think the display may be a form of hypnosis perhaps??? because I don;t see why at 3:22 the male would be so CONFIDENT that he has her seduced. so perhaps it lulls her into a dozed state and then whilst she is in this state he, rushes the mating before she changes her mind. (note also how the female barely reacted to the males sudden advance)

[@ex0ja]

I notice the female kind of downs down when she finally submits in the other videos. In this video she did that too right before he pounced, I'm wondering if he noticed her submissive position so knee he could pounce.

[@ex0ja]

*ducks down sorry It could just be her flinching though haha, she kind of does it at the same time he jumps, maybe I'm completely wrong

[@CarlosAnimax]

A play for reproduction. ❤️

[@blackprincess212006]

his dance didn't seem that great

[@Mabra51]

It's not a dance, it's to verify if the female will attack it or not.

[@blackprincess212006]

Mabra51 it actually is a dance and the girls like the spiders who can sing and dance at the same time.... maybe ritual is a preferred term. Dancing is very common when trying to select mates in the animal kingdom and it has nothing to do with being attacked

[@ValeriePallaoro]

read the whole comments ... might want to change "virgin males" to virgin females or you also give the wrong idea ... just saying .. also - when they said 'tired' out they might have meant habituated ... it's an idea .. that's how science works .. we all get to put up ideas ... Sorry you'll have to do the work to keep on top of the 'truth' of it though - good luck with that (hugs)

[@Peacockspiderman]

+Valerie Pallaoro thanks for pointing out the mistake, I hadn't noticed but now have corrected it. I think in this instance they just misinterpreted what I told them. Journalists very rarely allow me to read their story before publishing it is an inevitable consequence of that that errors creep in.

[@ValeriePallaoro]

Sure, understood and agreed. It's a lay over from the pre interwebs days of printing deadlines. There's no need for it these days though. Due for a change, I think. :-) Good luck with that too ( just saying :D )

[@NSWNationalParks]

Hi Peacockspiderman we love your videos of peacock spiders & would love to feature it in our content. Click stack.la/vcZmdQ to approve