A group of scientists has discovered three new species of harmless spiders in the alpine zone of Australia, a country known not only for its curious animals like kangaroos, koalas and platypus, but also for dangerous sharks and other highly venomous specimens.
Spiders are experts at camouflage.
joseph schubert
“The discovery of three new spiders in the Australian Alps is fantastic. Around three-quarters of Australia’s biodiversity is still waiting to be discovered by science,” Australian Environment and Water Minister Tanya Plibersek said on Thursday in a press release announcing the discovery.
The species discovered in the southeast of the country is a ‘warrior hunter’, which has a kind of shield on its chest and belongs to the sparassidae family (sparasidae), a tiny 3 millimeter jumping spider that looks like a licorice and that’s why it pretends to be a tree branch, according to the statement.
About three-quarters of Australia’s biodiversity is still waiting to be discovered
Tanya Pilbersek
The find reflects Australia’s immense biological diversity, ranging “from the infamous shield hunter, with war paint on its legs and a shield on its chest to ward off predators, to tiny jumping spiders that look like eight-eyed hatchlings.” at the Research Institute of victorian museumJoseph Schubert.
“Spiders are also specialists in camouflage. The wrapper spider is a ferocious nocturnal mini-hunter that disguises itself as a tree branch during the day to hide from predators”, explained the specialist who participated in this scientific expedition in the Australian Alps, located in the southeast from the country. the ocean country.
Australia is home to a wide variety of animal species, including the funnel spider (Atrax robustus) and the red-backed spider (Latrodectus hasselti), considered one of the most venomous in the world.
