Scientists Find New Genus of Tarantula in Thailand

Several entomologists attended a press conference held by the agriculture faculty at Khon Kaen University on Wednesday to announce the discovery of the bamboo-dwelling spider.

The species of spider dubbed Taksinus bambus in Asia has been described as a new genus and species. The discovery of a newly discovered species represents the first time a newly discovered species has been found in Tak.

Researchers from Khon Kaen and Kasetsart universities were among those to make the discovery, along with independent scientists.

Narin Chomphuphuang said the team named the newly discovered tarantula after King Taksin the Great. The monarch ruled Tak during the 18th century. There is one distinctive feature of this species, which is that it only lives in bamboo, according to the researcher.

The only tarantula that lives on bamboo

He added that the species was found in a remote area never before explored. A bamboo forest on a mountain more than 1,000 meters above sea level.

Only 31% of Thailand’s untouched forests remain, which poses an existential risk to the tarantula.

Usually, tarantulas live on or in trees in Southeast Asia. A tree-dwelling tarantula usually spends time living on different kinds of trees, but this is the first tarantula to live exclusively on bamboo. Thailand is home to only one tree-dwelling tarantula, he said.

The spider finds many advantages in making its home in bamboo, according to Chomphuphuang. Bamboo contains moisture that helps spiders maintain their temperature, especially tarantulas who shed their exoskeleton as they moult. The bamboo’s slippery surface keeps predators away.

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