New species of ‘killer spider’ with ‘spear-like’ legs discovered for the first time – researchers found 8 in a park

SCIENTISTS have discovered a new species of spider – and the animals are in search of their next meal.

Whitsunday Inland Pelican Spiders are a “bizarre group” of predatory creatures found in Australia, according to a new study.

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Over the past year, Australian researchers have visited Conway National Park in Whitsunday, Queensland, several times to survey local wildlife and look for pelican spiders, also known as Austrarchaea.

Pelican spiders, sometimes called “killer spiders,” feed on other creatures, capturing and manipulating them with their “long, spear-like” legs, according to one study. to study published May 14 in the peer-reviewed Australian Journal of Taxonomy.

Experts were looking for the “poorly researched” pelican spiders in the park and found eight spiders of unknown appearance, the study said.

The researchers then realized that they had discovered a new species.

Austrarchaea andersoni, or Whitsunday Inland pelican spider, is reddish-brown in color and has an unusual body shape, the study reports.

The spiders are just over 0.1 inch long and have two pairs of “rudimentary horns” and “hump-like” protuberances on the abdomen.

Photos from the study show the spiders perched on a branch. The creatures are able to pull and extend their legs.

When the spider’s legs are pulled in, the predatory creature appears compact – but extending the legs shows off the spider’s unusual physique.

Scientists identified the new species by the spiders’ physical characteristics, including their body shape compared to other pelican spiders.

The study reports that spiders live in leaves on the rainforest floor.

So far, the creatures have only been found in the Queensland park where they were first discovered.

The researchers said Austrarchaea andersoni is called “andersoni” after arachnologist Greg Anderson, who first collected the spiders in 2023.

The common name of the species refers to the park where it was discovered.

Whitsunday, Queensland, is a region of Australia located about 1,500 miles northwest of Sydney.

What is the Whitsunday Inland Pelican Spider?

Researchers recently discovered a new species of spider identified as the Whitsunday Inland pelican spider.

Australian scientists found the “killer spiders” in a park in Whitsunday, Queensland.

The creatures have “spear-like” legs that they use to capture and kill other spiders for their prey.

The Whitsunday Inland pelican spider, also known as Austrarchaea andersoni, is reddish-brown in color and has an unusual body shape.

When the spider’s long legs are pulled in, it appears compact – but extending the legs shows the animal’s strange physique.

Spiders are about 0.1 inch long and have two pairs of “rudimentary horns” and several “hump-like” protuberances on the abdomen.

Until now, they have only been found living in leaves on the rainforest floor.

The Whitsunday inland pelican spiders examined in the study are now being preserved in 75% ethanol at the Queensland Museum south of Brisbane.

Researchers have not yet provided a DNA analysis of the new species.

The discovery of the killer spiders comes as another terrifying creature was recently identified – but it existed millions of years ago.

ANOTHER SCARY DISCOVERY

A Ph.D. student recently discovered a fossil that is the oldest ancestor of modern scorpions, spiders and horseshoe crabs.

The fossils, originally found in the early 2000s, dated back 478 million years.

The discovery was able to bridge the huge gap between modern creatures and the Cambrian period, which occurred 505 million years ago.