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A close cousin to the infamous black widow spider, this species is usually found in the rainforests of Hawaii. In the local dialect, it is referred to as nananana makaki’i (face-patterned spider). The happy faced pattern is usually seen on the spider’s abdomen and it is these patterns that tend to form a happy, smiling face! Although most spiders tend to have this happy face, sometimes the patterns even make up a sad smiley or a frown! This is an endangered species and must be cared for.
The spider is up to 5 mm (0.20 in) long. Some morphs have a pattern resembling a smiley face or a grinning clown face on their yellow body. Each spider has a unique pattern and these differ from island to island. Some lack markings altogether. On Maui, the happy types seem to follow simple Mendelian inheritance rules; on other islands the body inheritance patterns seem to be sex-limited. The variation may provide camouflage against birds to counteract pattern recognition by predators by confusing them.
The spider lives beneath the leaves of plants, where it spins its much reduced webs. It hunts mainly in the evening. Females guard their eggs until they hatch and catch prey for their young. The spider is harmless to humans. It is under threat from extinction.
Conservationists are using them to highlight the plight of native species and the spider’s image appears on T-shirts, baseball caps and post cards, as well as this 6x14-inch plush toy.
