In News:

Two new species of jumping spiders belonging to the genus Epidelaxia have been discovered from the Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary in Kollam, Kerala, marking the first recorded presence of this genus in India. Previously, Epidelaxia was considered endemic to Sri Lanka.

Details of the Discovery

• Species: Epidelaxiafalciformis sp. nov. and Epidelaxiapalustris sp. nov.
• Discovered during field studies in December 2022 and April 2023.
• Conducted by researchers from:
  • University of Kerala
  • Saveetha Medical College, Chennai
  • Bharata Mata College, Kochi
• Published in Zootaxa (Feb 2025), a peer-reviewed journal.

Physical Features

• Females: Yellow triangular mark on the prosoma (front body) and white orbital setae around the eyes.
• Males of E. falciformis: Brown carapace with a yellow-brown stripe.
• Males of E. palustris: Pale brown band along the side of the body.
• Size:
  • E. falciformis: 4.39 mm
  • E. palustris: 4.57 mm (males), 3.69 mm (females)

Ecological Context

• These species are highly adapted to dense foliage in the Western Ghats, a recognized global biodiversity hotspot.
• The discovery extends the known geographical range of the genus and highlights the rich, yet underexplored, arachnid diversity of the Western Ghats.