Giant spider of the Sierra Cacachelas, a new discovery that surprises experts
A team of researchers from the San Diego Museum of Natural History, along with other experts, has discovered a new species of disproportionately large spider in Mexico.
Deborah Sullivan Brennan of the Los Angeles Times reported that califorctinus cachylensisalso known as the Sierra Cacachelas wandering spider, is about the size of a softball and represents a new genus of spiders.
The spider was discovered in 2013 by field entomologist Jim Berrian and his team while exploring the Sierra Cacachilas, a small mountain range in Baja California Sur in Mexico.
When examining a cave in the area, the researchers noticed a huge exoskeleton hanging from the ceiling.
Determined to find out more, they return the same night and, in the dark cavern, have their first encounter with the giant spider.
After picking up about two dozen samples in the area, the experts collected eight for further study.
The spider’s head and legs are brown, while the belly is yellow.
Despite his rather ordinary appearance, Brian describes him as an impressive spider.
The body is about an inch long while the legs are about four inches wide.
Although it belongs to the same family as the Brazilian wandering spider, which is known to be dangerous califorctinus cachylensis It is so different from its relatives that experts have classified it into a different genus of spiders.
According to María Luisa Jimenez, an expert on spiders in Baja, the spider is the largest species ever seen on the peninsula.
Although the spider looks scary, its bite is not fatal.
While many new species are discovered each year, expedition member Michael Wall believes this one is special because of its size.
“The chances of discovering new species are very high. But in general, most of the newly discovered species are little things that people don’t pay attention to, so given the size of this spider, it was a bit of a surprise.“.
Despite its size, the califorctinus cachylensis It is a far cry from being the largest spider in the world in terms of leg span, a title held by the giant hunter spider Heteropoda maxima, which lives in Laos and whose legs can grow to a foot long.
source: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/huge-new-spider-species-discovered-mexican-cave-180962848
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