white-cheeked jumping spider

Pelegrina is a genus of fairly small spiders called white-cheeked jumping spiders. It occurs throughout North America, in Central America, and in northern South America. There are at least 38 species worldwide, 26 species in North America north of Mexico, and at least 4 species in Minnesota. They are among the most common jumping spiders in North America.

Some Pelegrina species are found low on the foliage of herbs and shrubs, some on grasses, some on understory vegetation, and others on conifers.

Males are brown with white stripes. Females are mottled brown, gray, or yellow, have more muted markings, and have four pale spots on top of the abdomen. On both sexes there is a stripe of white scales beginning behind the anterior median eyes (AME) and extending to the rear of the plate covering the front body segment (carapace). This is most noticeable on males. On males there is an extra white stripe below the AMEs. This is the feature that gives the genus its common name. Most have an inverted white V-shaped marking on the forehead.

Sources

All jumping spiders, including those in the genus Pelegrina, were formerly place in the genus Metaphidippus.

Location: McCarthy Beach State Park