A new species of tarantula doesn’t mind a biff

RESEARCHERS have identified a new species and genus of tarantula and it has a unique style when it comes to defending itself.

New Colombian species of Tarantula — Kankuamo marquezi. Picture: Dirk Weinmann

A NEW type of tarantula has been discovered in the Sierra Nevada desert and it has a penchant for violence.

Discovered by researchers from universities in Uruguay and Colombia, the spider has been named Kankuamo marquezi and likes to get up close and personal with its victims.

Unlike many of its arachnid counterparts which defend themselves by launching poisonous hairs from their backside to ward off potential foes, this guy likes to get on the inside and throw jabs.

The spiky bristles that cover tarantulas can be deadly for smaller mammals and will leave humans with a very irritating itch. Most tarantulas use these to defend themselves by flicking their legs against their body sending the bristles flying towards their target. The Kankuamo marquezi, on the other hand, simply jabs its barbs into any animal that dares cross its path.

Scientists had previously identified six types of these barbs but the pattern of the orange coloured hairs of the Kankuamo marquezi is unlike any others.

On closer inspection, researchers noticed the males had unique genitalia leading them to realise the spider belonged to a completely new genus and species.

The findings were reported this week in the Journal ZooKeys.

Lead author and biologist from the University of the Republic in Uruguay Carlos Perafán told the New York Times the discovery raised interesting questions around the evolutionary pressures which caused the spider to grow its unique spikes.

The team named the new species of tarantula after the Columbian literary great Gabriel Garcia Marquez. The author of One Hundred Years of Solitude was reportedly a favourite of the South American researchers.

In addition to honouring the Nobel prize-winning author, the team named the new tarantula genus Kankuamo — after a group of indigenous peoples living on the southern slopes of the Sierra Nevada in Colombia.