A new funnel-web spider species discovered in north-east Tasmania has been named after the museum researcher who found it.
Hadronyche simonfearnii was discovered by Queen Victoria Museum Collections Officer Simon Fearn in late 2016 while he was out collecting beetles near Mount Paris Dam.
“We were pulling up logs, looking for beetles,” Fearn said.
“We’d rolled over hundreds of logs and hadn’t seen a funnel-web spider and then this one turned up.”
“I thought it was odd, because normally where funnel-webs occur, you tend to see a lot of them. It also looked different, a little bit weird.”
Two funnel-web species were already known in Tasmania. One is common in the east, while another was described back in the 1920s but hasn’t been seen since.
Fearn wasn’t planning to collect the spider at first, but decided to take it to QVMAG Honorary Research Associate John Douglas just in case.
Douglas, Tasmania’s only spider taxonomist, examined it and noticed some unusual features.
He sent photos to Queensland-based spider expert Dr Robert Raven, who confirmed it was likely a new species. The confirmation process took several years.
The newly described species has some unique traits. It is larger and more elongated than related spiders, with a shinier appearance.
QVMAG Senior Curator Alfonsina Arriaga Jimenez said the discovery was well deserved recognition.
“This is an important honour for anyone working in natural science and Simon truly deserves it,” she said.
