New Giant Tarantula Discovered in Sri Lanka
A new type of tarantula about the size of your face has been found in northern Sri Lanka. Scientists found the spiders with a leg span up to 8 inches across living in trees and the old doctors quarters of a hospital in Mankulam.
Covered in beautiful, ornate markings, the spiders belong to the genus Poecilotheria, known as Pokies for short. These are the tiger spiders, an arboreal group indigenous to India and Sri Lanka that are known for being colorful, fast, and venomous. As a group, the spiders are related to a class of South American tarantula that includes the Goliath bird-eater, the worlds largest.
The new spider, named Poecilotheria rajaei after a local police inspector who helped the team navigate post-civil war northern Sri Lanka, differs from similar species primarily in the markings on its legs and underside, which bears a pink abdominal band.
They are quite rare, Nanayakkara said. They prefer well-established old trees, but due to deforestation the number have dwindled and due to lack of suitable habitat they enter old buildings.
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