New sea spider species has hairy legs, red eyes and 3 lips

Two new species of sea spiders have been discovered in the Salish Sea, including one with hairy-looking legs, red eyes and a three-lipped mouth.

Researchers at the University of British Columbia identified the species after collecting specimens from marine habitats in British Columbia between September 2023 and August 2024. The discoveries are the first new sea spider species described in the Salish Sea – a large, rich inland sea that stretches along the international border between Washington state in the United States and British Columbia in Canada – in almost a century, according to the researchers.

One of the species, Callipallene pilosuspedes, gets its name from the long, curved spines covering its lower legs, which give the animal the appearance of having hairy feet. It also has red eyes, a short feeding structure with claws and a triangular mouth divided into three lips. The second species, Tanystylum kiixin, was named after an ancient Indigenous village site near where specimens were first collected.

The research, published in the journal Organisms Diversity and Evolution, combines a detailed examination of the animals with DNA analysis to provide more information about a poorly understood group of marine species, the University of British Columbia said…

Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/