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Most of us have an innate fear of spiders. We probably have been since our ancestors shared trees with the creepy-crawlies. But it’s more pronounced in some than others. Some people can observe spiders with creeped-out fascination, while others run screaming at the very sight of them. There’s even a few loonies who find the crawling beasties fetching, which is somewhat understandable: some spiders are almost jewel-like creations of nature.
But when it comes to tarantulas, I think that most of us would agree that it’s a big nope.
With regard to a startling new species discovered in Thailand, it’s a big nope-but-in-blue.
The spider, named Chilobrachys natanicharum, was already known in the pet trade as the electric blue tarantula, but a recent study published in the journal Zookeys finally confirmed it as a unique species.
Of the 900 known tarantula species, only about four per cent have any blue coloring, says Sarah J Kariko, an evolutionary biologist at Harvard University.
Part of the reason for the scarcity of blue spiders is the way colours work in nature.
Though pigments form other colors in animals, such as red and yellow, the process is different with blue. When hit by light, nanostructures in the cells reflect a blue color back to our eyes, says Kariko, who wasn’t involved in the new study.
Such structural colors often create iridescence, says Ling Li, an associate professor at Virginia Tech who collaborates with Kariko in studying spider colors.
“It’s like a peacock feather. If you change your angle the color will change a little bit,” while colors made from pigment don’t change with the angle of your view.
It’s not the only thing unique about the species.
The tarantula is also the first ever discovered in a mangrove forest in Thailand, study leader Narin Chomphuphuang, a plant pathologist at Khon Kaen University in Thailand, says via email […]
“We are amazed to discover that they can also thrive in highland evergreen forests. This spider’s incredible adaptation is fascinating.”
Another fascinating aspect of the spider is how its discovery shows commercialism, conservation and philanthropy can work hand-in-hand.
The tarantula’s name, C. natanicharum, refers to Natakorn Changrew and Nichada Changrew, two executives at Thai real estate developer Nichada Properties Co, Ltd, which won an auction to name the spider. Proceeds will go to support healthcare and education for the Lahu, an Indigenous group in southern Thailand.
But, if blue is so rare in such animals, why did this lot evolve such astonishing blue-ness?
Tarantulas lack sharp color vision, but these colors are so bright, “it’s pretty reasonable to say this is something meant to be seen,” [Sebastian Echeverri, an independent arachnologist and science communicator based in Pittsburgh] says.
For instance, the startling blues on the appendages in front of the tarantula’s mouth may deter predators by saying: “Look at me! I have big fangs! Don’t step over here!”
National Geographic
Believe me, when it comes to tarantulas, there’s no need for bright colours to tell me to keep my distance.
