Scorpion-tailed spider spotted in Satara

A rare spider species called the ‘Scorpion-tailed spider’ has been reported in Satara.

This spider is an interesting example of bio-mimicry as it behaves like a scorpion.

Yashwantrao Chavan Institute of Science zoology department head, associate professor VY Deshpande, and a BSc final-year-student, Siddhartha Kulkarni, found this species in an area near the city last month.

Deshpande said that this is the first scientific reporting of the species in Maharashtra. “The first reporting of this species in India was done by late zoologist BK Tikader in Sikkim in 1970,” he told DNA.

The scientific name of the species is Archnura Angura.
The specimen found in Satara is a female. “The males of these spiders have a length of four to six millimetre, while the females are eight-millimetre long. The female lays egg between June and November,” Kulkarni said.

The spider curls up its tail when disturbed or after sensing danger. When it curls up its tail it looks like a scorpion. However, the tail is harmless.

Deshpande and Kulkarni are working on spiders in Satara.
“There are 42,000 spider species in the world, but only 1,600 have been reported in India. This shows that the study of spiders is much neglected. As spiders feed on insects, they are important bio-control agents,” Deshpande said.