Selenopid Crab Spider for sale from Big Z's (Selenops actophilus). Spice-rated keeper notes, care guidance, and live-arrival packing where eligible.
Flat as a sticker, faster than your eyes can track
Selenops actophilus, the Selenopid Crab Spider or "Flattie," is a dorsoventrally flattened ambush hunter from the southwestern US and Mexico, pressed thin enough to slide into a crack in the bark and vanish. Under an inch across, it trades size for speed: it delivers some of the fastest strike-and-turn moves ever measured in any spider, whipping sideways in a blur before you register it moved. Set it on vertical bark and it melts into the surface, all patience and stillness, until something small wanders too close.
Low-maintenance and beginner-friendly, with venom that isn't medically significant to most people: it wants vertical bark, a sealed lid, and respect for how fast it moves. Feed lightly and let it hunt. Do not try to catch it barehanded, because it is gone before your fingers arrive. The care guide has the full build and the boundaries.
The numbers live in the care guide. Enclosure size, temps, humidity, feeding schedule, premolt signs, handling boundaries: it's all in the care guide for this exact fella. Start with the full Advanced guide, or click for the quick Open the Simple version →
Spider
Selenopid Crab Spider (Selenops actophilus) care guide Read shipping & LAG
Selenopid Crab Spider for sale from Big Z's (Selenops actophilus). Spice-rated keeper notes, care guidance, and live-arrival packing where eligible.
Flat as a sticker, faster than your eyes can track
Selenops actophilus, the Selenopid Crab Spider or "Flattie," is a dorsoventrally flattened ambush hunter from the southwestern US and Mexico, pressed thin enough to slide into a crack in the bark and vanish. Under an inch across, it trades size for speed: it delivers some of the fastest strike-and-turn moves ever measured in any spider, whipping sideways in a blur before you register it moved. Set it on vertical bark and it melts into the surface, all patience and stillness, until something small wanders too close.
Low-maintenance and beginner-friendly, with venom that isn't medically significant to most people: it wants vertical bark, a sealed lid, and respect for how fast it moves. Feed lightly and let it hunt. Do not try to catch it barehanded, because it is gone before your fingers arrive. The care guide has the full build and the boundaries.
The numbers live in the care guide. Enclosure size, temps, humidity, feeding schedule, premolt signs, handling boundaries: it's all in the care guide for this exact fella. Start with the full Advanced guide, or click for the quick Open the Simple version →
Selenops sp. - Spice 2: Beginner. Bark Buddy for a vertical crevice-style setup
Selenops sp.
Identity confidence: provisional. This is a genus, group, or trade name rather than a confirmed species. Treat it as the closest match we can stand behind, and use the more conservative end of any range.
Big Z's Quick Verdict: An impossibly flat, wall-hugging ambush hunter that is one of the fastest spiders alive. Low-maintenance, but nearly impossible to catch once loose, so keep the lid secured.
| Temp | 72-82°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low-Moderate ambient (45-60%) with strong cross ventilation; dry crevices, small dish |
| Setup | Vertical wall/bark-crevice flattened hunter |
| Substrate | Thin dry substrate plus vertical bark/rock surfaces |
| Feeding | 1/8-1/4" crickets/roach nymphs/flies (no larger than body length); weekly, offered at dusk |
| Handling | Not recommended (extremely fast) |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
Current Big Z's catalog: Yes
Selenops sp.
Identity confidence: provisional. This is a genus, group, or trade name rather than a confirmed species. Treat it as the closest match we can stand behind, and use the more conservative end of any range.
Keeper Snapshot: An impossibly flat, wall-hugging ambush hunter that is one of the fastest spiders alive. Low-maintenance, but nearly impossible to catch once loose, so keep the lid secured.
| Temperature | 72-82°F |
|---|---|
| Humidity | Low-Moderate ambient (45-60%) with strong cross ventilation; dry crevices, small dish |
| Setup Type | Vertical wall/bark-crevice flattened hunter |
| Substrate | Thin dry substrate plus vertical bark/rock surfaces |
| Feeding | 1/8-1/4" crickets/roach nymphs/flies (no larger than body length); weekly, offered at dusk |
| Care Difficulty | Spice 2: Beginner |
| Handling | Not recommended (extremely fast) |
Humidity zones: Very Low under 30% - Low 30-60% - Low-Moderate 40-70% - Moderate 60-80% - Moderate-High 70-85% - High 80%+ - Very High 90%+
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