Mopsus mormon
Green Jumping Spider Identification in Australia
Large bright-green Australian jumping spider with dominant forward-facing eyes, an elongated tapering abdomen and strongly different adult male and female face patterns.
Usually low riskAustralia’s Green or Northern Green Jumping Spider, Mopsus mormon, is unusually large for a jumping spider and is most convincing when several clues agree: bright green living colour, a long abdomen tapering towards the rear, two dominant front eyes and warm northern locality. Adult males carry conspicuous facial fringes and dark enlarged front-leg sections; females lack that male mask and show red-and-white patterning around the eyes. Colour alone is not enough—several Australian jumpers are green or metallic, and juvenile Mopsus can lack the finished adult pattern.
Quick identification
- Large jumping spider with two very large forward-facing eyes and a square-fronted face
- Bright green living body with an elongated abdomen narrowing towards the rear
- Adult male has conspicuous pale side fringes or “whiskers”, a dark facial area and dark femora on the strong first legs
- Adult female lacks the male mask and dark first-leg pattern and commonly has red-and-white markings around the eye field
- Day-active on broad leaves, shrubs, trunks or garden vegetation in warm northern and eastern Australia
What to check next
Photograph the spider from above and face-on without touching it. Record body length without legs, exact locality, plant or surface and whether a silk retreat is present. A sharp face and first-leg view can establish adult sex; keep a plain green juvenile at Mopsus or jumping-spider level if the elongated body and range do not also agree.
When to seek medical help
Mopsus mormon is not listed among Australia’s medically important spiders, but any large jumping spider may bite defensively if trapped against skin. Avoid handling. For a clearly witnessed minor bite, wash with soap and water and use a wrapped cold pack. Seek medical advice if pain is severe or persists for hours, swelling or itching worsens after 24–48 hours, the wound deteriorates or you feel unwell. Call 000 for breathing difficulty, collapse or anaphylaxis. Do not use pressure immobilisation for a confidently identified jumping-spider bite; healthdirect reserves it for suspected funnel-web or mouse-spider bites.
Where it is usually seen
Broad leaves, shrubs, rainforest foliage, forest edges, garden plants, tree trunks, fences and sunlit walls in warm parts of Queensland, the Northern Territory, northern New South Wales and northern Western Australia. It may enter houses but is principally a foliage hunter.