Kangaroo Island: Discovered in Australia for an endangered species of spider

Kangaroo Island
“Assassin’s Creed Spider”: Rediscovered on an Australian island for an endangered species

Kangaroo Island is Australia’s third largest island in the southwest of the continent and was badly affected by last year’s devastating wildfires. Dangerous because a third of the island was home to natural habitats and many other animals – koalas, birds, sea lions and even penguins. Large areas of vegetation were burned, and it took a long time to restore nature. But in the areas affected by the fire, scientists have now made a surprising discovery.

The group around the doctor. Jessica Marsh of the South Australian Museum found two specimens of a species of spider that were thought to be actually extinct: a rare subspecies of the “Assassin’s Creed Spider”, meaning “killer spider”. Species in the family Cepherricia Austini It is said to have inhabited the earth for about 140 million years – and, contrary to previous assumptions, still exists. The last specimens were found in another part of the island, which was completely destroyed in 2015 by a previous wildfire. Until then, this area was the only animal habitat. They were not expected to have survived anywhere else.

The spiders were thought to have become extinct after the fire

“This is the first time the species has been found since a severe fire destroyed its only known habitat,” said Jessica Marsh. “We’ve been looking for spiders ever since, and now it’s wonderful to find them.” The “killer spider” from Kangaroo Island lives only in foliage near land because it grows only in untouchable nature and grows very slowly even after disasters such as wildfires. At the same time, it is easily flammable and burns particularly quickly. Due to this habitat specialization, the existence of rare spiders is severely threatened.

Humans, on the other hand, are not threatened by graffiti: spiders are only five millimeters in size and are not dangerous to humans. They got their luxurious name only because of their relatively powerful jaws, which help them to hunt other spiders. Another name for the animal is “pelican spider” because they have unusually long necks and a pronounced jaw, reminiscent of really large birds.

proof’s: “Daily Mail”, “News.com.au”

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