Deep within the unyielding darkness of a Brazilian cave, a faded, blind, spiny beast in moderation feels its method throughout rust-colored rocks. Meet Paleotoca diminas, a spider new to science.
The species, described August 5 in Taxonomy, makes its house in strange subterranean lairs: the long-abandoned burrows of extinct megafauna, akin to massive flooring sloths or massive armadillos, researchers say.
Arachnologist Igor Cizauskas of the Biodiversity Analysis Beef up Group in São Paulo and associates discovered the P. diminas spiders in iron-rich caves within the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. About two millimeters lengthy, the spiders are a desaturated yellow, lack eyes and feature prickly legs. In addition they recreation specialised hairs steadily utilized by arachnids for sensing vibrations in the course of the air — an adaptation for existence in everlasting darkness (SN: 10/15/16).