It looks like a crab, runs sideways, can change colour, and lurks in meadows, waiting for unsuspecting prey to wander by

Danger lurks among the inviting petals of meadow flowers, but pollinating insects sometimes don’t spot it until too late. 

Their nemesis is the flower crab spider. Its modus operandi doesn’t involve a web.

Instead, it lies in wait on flowers such as ox-eye daisies or buttercups, with its long front legs held out sideways like a crab’s pincers (it also walks sideways like a crab), ready to grab any unsuspecting bee or fly that gets too close. 

The female crab spider (though not the smaller male) is able to enhance her deadly disguise by changing colour, slowly turning either white or yellow to blend in with her flowery background.

Flower crab spider waits to ambush prey – is this ant on its menu? Credit: Sinclair Stammers/Getty Images

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