Scientists have discovered a spider in Brazil so scary they named it after the “Lord of the Rings” character Smeagol.
Writing in the journal ZooKeys, researchers said the new species of troglobitic harvestman spider, landumoema smeagol, is believed to be found only in a network of caves in Brazil’s Minas Gerais state. The first blind species of this genus, this looks like something out an arachnophobes nightmare.
It has spindly, long legs and a ghostly, golden yellow color.
Ricardo Pinto-da-Rocha and his colleagues said the area where the spider calls home is largely unprotected and threatened by logging and limestone extraction.The researchers called for long-term studies on the population and the biology of landumoema smeagol, as part of an effort to establish a conservation policy for the species and possibily a protected area surrounding the caves.
Smeagol was the name of a fictional character in the stories of J. R. R. Tolkien’s that included “The Lord of the Rings.” Smeagol was corrupted by the One Ring and became Gollum, a cave-dwelling character best known for his pale skin, bulging eyes and habit of making a horrible swallowing noise with his throat.