Predation by the striped lynx spider,Oxyopes salticusHentz, on cotton arthropods was studied in an unsprayed field in east Texas.O. salticuswas the most abundant spider species in cotton (68% of all spiders collected by D-Vac), with population densities of<0.1 spiders per m2in June gradually increasing to 7.2 per m2in September. This diurnally and nocturnally feeding spider captured prey ranging between 0.1 and 1.1 of its own size. Most prey were small (average body length = 2.61 ± 0.16 mm [SEM]). The natural diet ofO. salticus, a generalist predator, wasdiverse, and consisted (by number) mainly ofSolenopsis invictaBuren (21.9%), leafhoppers (17.2%), dipterans (15.6%), aphids (14.1%), and spiders (14.1%). Predaceous arthropods, includingGeocorisbugs, and larvae ofChrysopaand Syrphidae, composed 42% of the spiders' diet. The proportion ofO. salticusfeeding at any one time was<5% throughout the 1985 season. Asubadult/adult spider captured about one prey daily in the middle of the growing season. Based on population density counts and the assessment of the prey capture rate we estimated that in the middle of the growing season ca. 0.12 million prey may have been killed byO. salticusper ha cotton land per wk (weekly kill ca. 4.5% of the average arthropod density).