Chilobrachys natanicharum shines in blue.
A spider researcher and a YouTube star hiked into a mangrove forest in Thailand. Together, they discovered an electrifying new species of tarantula. It sounds like the start of an adventure movie, but it’s real. The spider they discovered is Chilobrachys natanicharum, a stunning electric blue arachnid the size of a person’s palm.
JoCho Sippawat has 3.25 million YouTube subscribers who watch his wildlife-focused expeditions in Thailand. Sippawat teamed up with spider researcher Narin Chomphuphuang of Khon Kaen University. The pair had previously worked together in 2022 to identify another new species of tarantula that lives in bamboo stalks.
Chilobrachys natanicharum is the subject of a new study published this week in the journal ZooKeys. Scientists were aware of the spider’s existence since it had been found circulating in the commercial pet trade, but its habitat and natural behaviors were unknown. A 2022 study on the exotic pet trade found that over 1,200 species of arachnids were being traded online, with tarantulas as one of the most impacted groups. The electric blue tarantula’s eye-catching appearance makes it an attractive commodity.
The researchers discovered the spider in the wild living in the hollow of a mangrove tree. “This is the first tarantula species ever found in a Thai mangrove forest,” said ZooKeys publisher Pensoft in a statement on Thursday.
A human hand gives a sense of the size of the electric-blue tarantula.
The spiders weren’t keen on being found. “These tarantulas inhabit hollow trees, and the difficulty of catching an electric blue tarantula lies in the need to climb a tree and lure it out of a complex of hollows amid humid and slippery conditions,” said Chomphuphuang. “During our expedition, we walked in the evening and at night during low tide, managing to collect only two of them.”
While the blue tarantula has a rare coloration, it’s not the only one with an azure appearance. Poecilotheria metallica, also called the peacock tarantula, is a critically endangered forest-dwelling spider hailing from India. It has a darker blue look than Chilobrachys natanicharum.
Chilobrachys natanicharum’s blazing blue comes down to a trick of the light. “The secret behind the vivid blue coloration of our tarantula lies not in the presence of blue pigments, but rather in the unique structure of their hair, which incorporates nanostructures that manipulate light to create this striking blue appearance,” said Chomphuphuang.
Sometimes new species are named for their discoverers or even celebrities or fictional characters (like these animals with Star Wars-related monikers). Chilobrachys natanicharum has a particularly unusual name origin. The naming rights were sold via a charity auction benefiting the Indigenous Lahu hill tribe in Thailand. A property company won and named the tarantula after the combined first names of executives Natakorn Changrew and Nichada Changrew.
The study offers a detailed physical description of the spider, but there are still a lot of unknowns about Chilobrachys natanicharum, particularly when it comes to its conservation status. Deforestation and collection for the pet trade are two potential threats to the species. The research team called for monitoring the spider’s population, establishing protected areas and recruiting legal breeders for Thai tarantula conservation projects. “It is essential to take these steps to prevent further declines in tarantula populations and protect them for future generations,” the paper concluded.
