Green meshweaver
This spider's abdomen shines such a bright metallic green that it can look like a drop of dew rather than a living animal resting on a leaf.
| Where | Leaves of shrubs in gardens |
|---|---|
| Size | Female 4.5 to 5 mm, male 3.5 to 4 mm body length |
| When | June to December |
The Green meshweaver is the largest species in its family, with a yellowish body and legs and a strikingly shiny green abdomen that makes it easy to pick out among duller relatives. It rests on the upper surface of broad leaves such as ivy or grapevine rather than hiding away.
It spins a small sheet web across a leaf and waits at the edge, rushing out to seize insects that land on the silk, sometimes prey larger than itself. Females hide their egg sacs away from the retreat, often some distance from where they hunt.
Traits
Habitat
Garden
Colour
Green, Yellow
Active
Day and night
To people
Too small to bite people; most often noticed as a shining green abdomen resting on a garden leaf.
Activity through the year
Often confused with
Nigma puella is smaller, male 2 to 2.8 mm and female 2.5 to 3.4 mm, with a reddish abdomen rather than the shining green abdomen of the Green meshweaver.
Questions
Is the Green meshweaver dangerous to people?
Too small to bite people; most often noticed as a shining green abdomen resting on a garden leaf.
When can you see the Green meshweaver?
The Green meshweaver can be seen from June to December, by day and at night.
Plate retouched from a photo by Michal Honskus, CC BY 4.0, iNaturalist Licence
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Last updated 2026-09-27. Every entry is checked against published sources.