Spiders walk along the Avon River

Trapdoor spiders often emerge from their burrows after rain - but why?

Newly matured male spiders emerge from their burrows and go looking for a mate, after spending anywhere from three to seven years living exclusively underground.

If you live in the micro-world, moist soil is perfect for digging in - so many types of juvenile trapdoor spider emerge after rains to start excavating their own private burrows. It's important for them to find a good spot, as they will stay there for life!!

This Mouse Spider (Missulena spp.) was walking along with purpose under some Jam (Acacia accuminata) trees down by the Avon River in Northam. He seems to know where to go, but he'd better look out - there's an army of obstacles for him to avoid, like:

• large hungry centipedes looking for a bite to eat,
• cunning wasps who would might carry them away;
• sharp eyed magpies and butcher birds who watch for tasty spiders at dawn and dusk, and
• racehorse goanna's and bandicoot's who can dig them out of their burrows!

No wonder he's moving so fast!

So, if you see a big spider walking along the ground this winter/autumn, spare a thought for the hard times it has overcome to get that far and take a moment to watch it go along on it's way.

Do feel free to take a picture though, and send it to info@wheatbeltnrm.org.au so Wheatbelt NRM can help you find out a bit more about it.

The last one we had someone ask us about was a brand new species all together!

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.

Goldfields Trapdoor Spiders

Rebecca from Subiaco sent in a few photos of some trapdoor spider burrows she noticed on a recent wildflower expidition into the goldfields.

The burrows are made by mygalomorph trapdoor spiders from the family Idiopidae and can be quite large. You can see at least three rings on the burrow lids which suggest the spiders within are that old. They attach the local fallen litter to the burrow edge with their silk and ambush prey such as ants and beetles.

Trapdoor spiders make great indicators of habitat health, as they need many other insects and bugs to sustain them, while also being seen as a tasty snack by predators such as reptiles and butcher birds.

As spring 2011 progresses we will post any interesting and unusual discoveries that come across our desk, so send any of your cool pics to info@wheatbeltnrm.org.au if you want to know more!

New Wheatbelt Trapdoor Spider

A totally new species of trapdoor spider was found by a member of the Grass Valley community last month!

Mr John Cornish found the unusually colored spider in his backyard and took it to the Northam DEC office for more information.


"I just knew it was different to anything I'd seen before so I collected it in a jar and took it to DEC" said John.

The spider eventually found it's way to the WA Museum, (via Dr. Volker Framenau, who took this great picture) where Dr. Mark Harvey, Curator of Myriopods and Arachnids, identified it as being a new species.

After a short period it was clear to Dr. Harvey it was not like anything else in the WA Museum's collections.

"It had different reproductive parts and was a long way from other similar species" Dr. Harvey said. "The Genus was only described on 2001, having only two species in it. This new find will likely take the tally to three species, once the species is formally described.

Where else in the world can a new species of animal walk right up to your back door? In the central wheatbelt!!

The unique diversity of our region is constantly being added to, whether its new species' of spiders from Grass Valley, unique flora from saline seeps in Dowerin or new communities of plants from past the clearing line.

So, if you've seen something new, different of just interesting from the Wheatbelt, contact Wheatbelt NRM on 089 690 2250 and we'll see if we can help you find out what it is.