Thunderstorms Reveals Interesting Trapdoor Spider

Recent summer thunderstorms in the wheatbelt have uncovered another interesting species of trapdoor spider from the Grass Valley area, Western Australia.

Photo by Dr. Volker Framenau - check out his other images

Found after the storms which rolled across the Wheatbelt on New Years Eve, this new spider is closely related to the Black Wishbone Spider (check the article on Esperance Wildlife Blog). However, this spider is smaller and more brown in colour, making it likely to be a variant from the Black Wishbone Spider.

Wishbone spiders are so named due to the shape of their burrow, which generally have two entrances on the soil surface, leading to a single tunnel where the spider retreats to avoid predators and the heat.

Often regarded as one of the most common Mygalomorph spiders found in the wheatbelt after summer rain storms, this slightly different 'morphospecies' of Aname spp. is currently being investigated by spider experts and the Western Australian Museum's Arachnid and Myriopod Section.

The last time someone from Grass Valley found something interesting, it ended up being an entirely new species of trapdoor spider - and their discovery was considerd one of the Top Ten Weirdest Lifeforms of 2011 by National Geographic!

So, if you have seen any Mygalomorph spiders recently, or even unusual bugs or critters out in the Wheatbelt - all sorts of things appear at the light at the front door in the days after rain - email info@wheatbeltnrm.org.au and Wheatbelt NRM staff will do what they can to find out what your critter might be.

Biodiversity Hotspots

Global biodiversity hotspots 

Australia is one of seventeen countries described as being 'megadiverse'. This group of countries has less than 10% of the global surface, but support more than 70% of the biological diversity on earth.

The concept was first developed by Russell Mittermeier in 1988, as a way to prioritise conservation action.

 

Map showing location of 'Megadiverse' countries

National biodiversity hotspots

The Australian Government announced 15 national biodiversity hotspots in October 2003. Whilst international biodiversity hotspots have been identified for some time, this was the first attempt to identify biodiversity hotspots at the national scale.

These 15 areas are examples of locations that contain particularly high levels of biodiversity under threat. 

10. Central and Eastern Avon Wheatbelt (Western Australia)

The dominant vegetation of this area includes woodlands of Wandoo, York Gum, Salmon Gum, Casuarina and some areas of proteaceous scrub heaths. The woodlands contain many of Western Australia's threatened plants and birds. 

The area is particularly rich in endemic plants - Grevilleas, Hakeas, Eucalypts, Acacias, Eriostemons, and the Asteracea family - and invertebrates, particularly ground-dwelling spiders.

 

Most of the native vegetation has been cleared for agriculture and grazing, leading to extensive salinity problems over one-third of the area. Remnant vegetation, wetlands, river systems, populations of species and ecosystems are in poor condition, and the fragmentation of vegetation means an increased threat of weeds, fire, and feral animals.

Sedimentation, salination and other pressures such as water diversion and water pollution threaten the area's nationally important wetlands.

For detailed info on the flora and fauna of the Avon Wheatbelt IBRA Region visit the Biodiversity Programs resources page.

For more information about Biodiversity Hotspots visit this link, or contact Wheatbelt NRM on info@wheatbeltNRM.org.au