Tartarus mullamullangensis
Encyclopedia
Tartarus mullamullangensis, informally known as the Mullamullang cave spider, is a palm-sized, long-legged cave spider from Western Australia
. Completely adapted to cave living, it is blind and totally lacks pigmentation, giving it a creamy white appearance.
The cylindrical lampshade-shaped web is spun out between rocks.
The species is closely related to spiders found in forests of Southern Australia. This makes it likely that T. mullamullangensis is a relict
species from the time when the now arid region was much more humid.
system in the Nullarbor Plain
of Western and Southern Australia.
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. Completely adapted to cave living, it is blind and totally lacks pigmentation, giving it a creamy white appearance.
The cylindrical lampshade-shaped web is spun out between rocks.
The species is closely related to spiders found in forests of Southern Australia. This makes it likely that T. mullamullangensis is a relict
Relict
A relict is a surviving remnant of a natural phenomenon.* In biology a relict is an organism that at an earlier time was abundant in a large area but now occurs at only one or a few small areas....
species from the time when the now arid region was much more humid.
Name
The species name is derived from Mullamullang, a caveCave
A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...
system in the Nullarbor Plain
Nullarbor Plain
The Nullarbor Plain is part of the area of flat, almost treeless, arid or semi-arid country of southern Australia, located on the Great Australian Bight coast with the Great Victoria Desert to its north. It is the world's largest single piece of limestone, and occupies an area of about...
of Western and Southern Australia.