New species of marine spider found, named after Bob Marley

Queensland : A new kind of marine spider has been found by the researchers, capable of surviving in the watery conditions.

The sub-aquatic spider was first seen in January 2009 across the coastlines of Sunshine State of Queensland, Australia. 

The scientists who found the new spider species have named it Desis bobmarleyi, inspired by the name of legendary musician Bob Marley and his hit song “High Tide or Low Tide.”

Co-author of the study Dr. Barbara Baehr, a spider expert at Queensland Museum said, “The song ‘High Tide or Low Tide’ promotes love and friendship through all struggles of life. It is his music that aided a field trip to Port Douglas in coastal Queensland, Australia, to collect spiders with a highly unique biology.”

After years of study on the spider species, researchers from Queensland Museum and the University of Hamburg revealed that it has a unique kind of capability of surviving inside the water.

As per the study, both male and female group of the Desis bobmarleyi are found hovering across the coastlines of the Great Barrier Reef. Unlike other spiders who stays in land, these species have adapted themselves in a way that they can survive underwater.

They make air chambers from silk so that they could breathe while underwater. So, when the sea water recedes, these spiders come and hunt small invertebrates that roam on nearby corals, rocks, etc.

The Desis bobmarleyi spiders are mostly red-brown in color, and their legs have an orange-brown color. The legs of both the sexes are covered with a dense layer thin, long and dark-grey hair-like structures.

During the study, it was found out that the female specimen measured nearly 9mm in length, and the male specimen was around 6mm long.