Scientists have discovered two new tarantula species on the slopes of the Andes mountains, and both already appear to be severely threatened.
Researchers with the Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ) documented the spiders on trees in the wilderness of western Ecuador, according to a study published in ZooKeys. The tarantulas belong to the genus Psalmopoeus.
Tarantulas are a varied group of generally large and often hairy spiders found primarily in warm regions around the world. To date, more than 1,000 tarantula species have been identified.
One of the newly identified species was spotted in late February this year, around 5 feet above the forest floor in a forest at the foothills of the Cordillera Occidental—one of the two main mountain ranges of the Andes in Ecuador.
Even though this species, called Psalmopoeus chronoarachne, has just been discovered, the available evidence suggests that it is seriously threatened by human activities in the region, such as mining and agriculture.
In fact, the scientific name of the species refers to this vulnerability: it is based on the Greek words for "time" and "spider."
"The compound word refers to the adage that these spiders could 'have their time counted' or reduced by impactful anthropogenic activities. The name addresses conservation concerns about the survival and prevalence of spider species in natural environments," the authors wrote in the paper.
The other newly identified species was found in the north of the Cordillera Occidental at an altitude of around 3,000 feet.
The researchers named this species, first spotted in a bamboo fence in a rural parish called San José de Alluriquín, Psalmopoeus satanas. The first individual the researchers observed immediately exhibited defensive behavior, inspiring its name.
"It is appropriately named because the initial individual that was collected had an attitude!" Roberto J. León-E, one of the study authors, said in a press release. "[The defensive] behavior then transformed into fleeing, where the spider made quick sporadic movements, nearly too fast to see."
Researchers at USFQ's Laboratory of Terrestrial Zoology "grew very fond" of the male specimen despite his "bad temperament and sporadic attacks," the authors wrote in the study.
This species also faces serious threats due to habitat degradation, loss and fragmentation—largely due to agriculture, mining and urban expansion. The authors note that environmental legal protections do not cover the areas where the two newly identified tarantulas live.
"The implementation of protected areas in these localities is essential to maintain the remaining population of these endangered species and to encourage research on the remaining undescribed or unknown tarantula species in the area," Pedro Peñaherrera-R, who led the research, said in the press release.
"This was an interesting study authored by two dedicated and talented students who I was glad to assist by giving advice and a critique of their completed manuscript," Danni Sherwood, a scientist with the Arachnology Research Association in the United Kingdom, who was not an author on the paper but helped the researchers with their work, told Newsweek.
"Pedro and Roberto have shown the genus is more diverse in Ecuador than previously thought and further solidify the fact Ecuador has a wealth of undescribed diversity in regards to tarantulas," Sherwood said. "Their choice of the species name P. satanas is both humorous and garnering widespread media attention for this species, which I hope will raise awareness about its conservation needs."
Antonio Domingos Brescovit, a researcher with the Laboratory of Zoological Collections in Butantã, Brazil, who was also not involved in the study, told Newsweek: "I think it is interesting work and helps to expand knowledge of Andean diversity, especially in Ecuador."
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Update 1/24/24, 8:38 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with comments from Danni Sherwood and Antonio Domingos Brescovit.
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