Two new species of jumping spiders discovered in Meghalaya

Scientists of the Zoological Survey of India have discovered two new species of jumping spiders in Meghalaya, a spokesperson of the ZSI said on Wednesday.

The newly described species — Asemonea dentis and Colyttus nongwar — belong to the Salticidae family, or 'jumping spiders" which are renowned for their quick reflexes and unique predatory behaviour of stalking and pouncing on prey rather than spinning webs, the ZSI said in a statement.

Scientist Souvik Sen, who led the research team alongside Dr Sudhin P P, emphasised the importance of the findings. "These discoveries are just a glimpse of the exceptional biodiversity of Northeast India. Very few systematic surveys have been carried out there and many more species are undoubtedly waiting to be unravelled," he said.

ZSI Director Dhriti Banerjee said that findings like these underscore the need for more extensive surveys, especially in the Northeast, to document India's vast and unique natural heritage. "Meghalaya's forests, sacred groves and cliffs are irreplaceable ecological assets," she said.

This discovery marks only the third Indian representative of the genus Asemonea, which is typically small and underexplored in the country.

The species is named 'dentis' due to a distinctive tooth-like projection observed on the male's palpal femur, a key identification feature. Males feature a greenish-brown body with a V-shaped pale-yellow abdominal marking, while females are creamy white with black patterns.

This also represents the second species of the poorly known Oriental genus Colyttus to be discovered in India.

It is named after Nongwar village, the specific location in Meghalaya where it was found.