Trapdoor Spiders: New Giant Spider Species Discovered in Australia

New giant spider species belonging to the common trapdoor spider group was found by scientists in Australia.

The spider is known for developing and using a sophisticated method of hunting by making "trap doors" in the wild.

New Giant Spider Species

The study published in The Journal of Arachnology on March 15 highlights the discovery of the giant spider called Euoplos dignitas, a new species of the trapdoor spider, in the Brigalow Belt of inland Queensland, Australia.

Analysis revealed that the new giant spider species is sister to the spinnipes-group from eastern Queensland.

The trapdoor spider is unrelated to a morphologically similar arachnid called E. grandis that lives further south of the Brigalow Belt.

However, both the E. dignitas and E. grandis spider species are able build trap doors in woodland habitats on vertosols or black soils.

Other common features include their similar females and sex-driven males spiders, The Journal of Arachnology study said.

The International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List or the IUCN Red List, classifies the Euoplos dignitas as an endangered species.

Only Found in Queensland

Australian researchers found the super-sized spider species, which are only found in Queensland.

The female members of the rare spider species can live for more than 20 years in the wild and grow up to five centimeters long, the BBC reported.

Scientists said the spiders have experience habitat loss due to land clearing.

The said arachnid species build the deadly door-like structures out of leaves to prey on insects.

These traps typically measure approximately 1.5 to three centimeters.

The study was spearheaded by a trio of archaeologists named Jeremy Wilson, Michael Rix, and Paul Oliver from the Queensland Museum Collections and Research Center, who revealed the rediscovery of a species of giant trapdoor spider, which are likely to live in hidden parts of Queensland, according to Phys.org.

The research team undergone a four-year field study searching for evidence of the existence of the trapdoor spider species, using DNA analysis using specimens found both in the field and in the museum.

Trapdoor Spider Species

Similar to a sinkhole, trapdoor spiders are known for making a door into their burrows for any suspecting prey, especially small animals.

However, the Australian Museum clarified that most trapdoor spiders are "misleadingly named" since not all species under it have the ability to craft such trick.

Nevertheless, spiders that can make the deadly entrances are nearly undetectable when the door is closed.

The common name trapdoor spider (Arbanitis sp.) includes several spider families, including Ctenizidae, Cyrtaucheniidae, Idiopidae, Actinopodidae, and Migidae.

In spite their slight morphological differences, the common prey of the spider group include beetles, crickets, grasshoppers, and moths.

Despite their ferocious track record, the predators of trapdoor spiders include birds, centipedes, scorpions, and among others.

The said spiders are reportedly in controlling pests, and do not pose a significant threat to humans.