Kalea the Crab Spider and Rue Anemone Necklace

Please meet Kalea, the goldenrod crab spider! Kalea means "joy and happiness" in Hawaiian and it first her perfectly! This tiny beauty hides in early‑spring wildflowers and waits for food to come to her. She does not make a web but relies on camouflage to ambush pollinators visiting the flowers. Female (not male) goldenrod crab spiders are among the few species that can actually change color. Depending on the color of the flower they call home, given time they can secrete yellow pigments into their skin to match the flower. They can appear white if they choose to live on a rue anemone, then later move to a brown‑eyed Susan. To blend in with her new surroundings she produces a yellow pigment in the top layer of her skin cells. Turning yellow takes time, usually 10–25 days. Turning back to white is much faster because she reabsorbs and excretes the yellow pigment in about six days. Nothing new needs to be made when she returns to white. Female coloration varies among every single one of them as well. No two female goldenrod crab spider females look exactly the same! 

This one‑of‑a‑kind necklace was made entirely by hand from sterling and fine silver. Nothing in this piece was cast. Each element was fused in my torch flame and then shaped with traditional metalsmithing tools to mimic nature. The pendant measures 2.5 inches tall and 2.5 inches wide. The pendant is suspended on a handmade 22‑inch sterling chain. At the bottom of the rue‑anemone flower and leaf cluster hangs a teardrop opal that reflects sunlight in rainbow colors.

Kalea the crab spider is finished and will be packaged safely and shipped to you within 3–5 business days.