Science / Medicine : Colony of Blind Spiders Found

A colony of blind spiders, previously believed extinct, has been found in caves under the desert of the Australian outback.

Found beneath the Nullarbor Plain, a 104,000-square-mile expanse of sand and low bushes in the south of Australia, the spiders are almost devoid of color, said Michael Gray a biologist with the Australian Museum in Sydney. The spiders, one of only three species in the world that are blind and live underground, may have inhabited the desert for 3 million years, Gray said.

Scientists believe the spiders, similar to trap-door spiders and called Troglodiplura lowryi, were forced into caves millions of years ago as Australia’s climate dried up. There they evolved, adapting to their surroundings and losing their eyesight.

Leading an expedition into the desert in July, Gray and his colleagues found eight juveniles in one of the thousands of caves that weave their way under the Nullarbor Plain. A mummified spider was discovered 20 years ago, but repeated expeditions failed to find live colonies, prompting scientists to declare the animal extinct.