Spelungula | |
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Nelson cave spider, Oparara basin, Karamea, New Zealand | |
Scientific classification
![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
Class: | Arachnida |
Order: | Araneae |
Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
Family: | Gradungulidae |
Genus: |
Spelungula Forster, 1987 [1] |
Species: | S. cavernicola
|
Binomial name | |
Spelungula cavernicola
Forster, 1987
|
Spelungula is a monotypic genus of South Pacific large-clawed spiders containing the single species, Spelungula cavernicola, or the Nelson cave spider. It was first described by Ray Forster, Norman I. Platnick, & Michael R. Gray in 1987, [2] and has only been found in caves in the northwestern part of New Zealand's South Island. [1] [3]
The genus name is derived from "spelunca", which is latin for cave and is feminine in gender. The species name "cavernicola" refers to the species restriction to caves. [2]
It is New Zealand's largest known spider, with a legspan of 13 to 15 centimetres (5.1 to 5.9 in) and a body length of 2.4 centimetres (0.94 in), and its main prey is cave weta. [4] [5]
It is one of the few spider species afforded legal protection under the New Zealand Wildlife Act. [6] [7] It is classed as "Range Restricted" and stable in the New Zealand Threat Classification System. [8]
In May 2022, the Crazy Paving Cave in Kahurangi National Park, where the spiders are known to breed, was closed for a year in an attempt to help the population to recover. [9]
Spelungula | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Nelson cave spider, Oparara basin, Karamea, New Zealand | |
Scientific classification
![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
Class: | Arachnida |
Order: | Araneae |
Infraorder: | Araneomorphae |
Family: | Gradungulidae |
Genus: |
Spelungula Forster, 1987 [1] |
Species: | S. cavernicola
|
Binomial name | |
Spelungula cavernicola
Forster, 1987
|
Spelungula is a monotypic genus of South Pacific large-clawed spiders containing the single species, Spelungula cavernicola, or the Nelson cave spider. It was first described by Ray Forster, Norman I. Platnick, & Michael R. Gray in 1987, [2] and has only been found in caves in the northwestern part of New Zealand's South Island. [1] [3]
The genus name is derived from "spelunca", which is latin for cave and is feminine in gender. The species name "cavernicola" refers to the species restriction to caves. [2]
It is New Zealand's largest known spider, with a legspan of 13 to 15 centimetres (5.1 to 5.9 in) and a body length of 2.4 centimetres (0.94 in), and its main prey is cave weta. [4] [5]
It is one of the few spider species afforded legal protection under the New Zealand Wildlife Act. [6] [7] It is classed as "Range Restricted" and stable in the New Zealand Threat Classification System. [8]
In May 2022, the Crazy Paving Cave in Kahurangi National Park, where the spiders are known to breed, was closed for a year in an attempt to help the population to recover. [9]