Prague, Feb 4 (CTK) – A new spider species, from the Dysderidae family of six-eyed spiders, has been discovered living in light oak groves in the warm areas of south Moravia and east Bohemia, but endangered by the thickening of woods, Milan Rezac, from the Crop Research Institute, told CTK on Sunday.
The new species, Dysdera cechica, is typical with its forward protruding hooked mandibles, which enable it to seize miniature crustaceans, its exclusive prey, lift them and bite in their soft belly.
Unlike other spiders, the Dysdera cechica males are not consumed by the female after copulation but they mate with more females during their relatively long life.
The spider’s closest relatives occur in northern Italy, southern France and northeastern Spain.
Unfortunately, the newly discovered species tends to disappear from the Czech Republic as a result of the forest management supporting thick forests at the cost of light oak woods.
“This eliminates not only the newly discovered species but also a number of other organisms that need the same type of habitat,” Rezac said.
Until now, new animal and plant species discovered in the Czech Republic have been named “bohemicus/ca/cum” or “moravicus/ca/cum”, depending on whether they occur in Bohemia or Moravia.
Dysdera cechica occurs in both Bohemia and Moravia, which is why its name has been derived from Czechia, the brief name of the Czech Republic, as the first organism bearing the name of the whole country, Rezac said.
