A new spider species found in the central Western Ghats in Karnataka, India, bares an uncanny resemblance to the sorting hat in the Harry Potter films.
The spider, Eriovixia gryffindori, is named after the original owner of the hat, Godric Gryffindor, one of the four founders of the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry.
JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series tweeted the researchers to congratulate them on their discovery.
The small spider, which is seven millimetres (0.28 inches) long, is nocturnal and takes refuge in dead, dry leaves which they're well camouflaged for.
The spiders shape and colour allow it to mimic the look of dead leaves when it's asleep during the day so that predators don't see it.
The spider was discovered by a team of scientists in India, led by Javed Ahmed, an arachno-naturalist.
Mr. Ahmed, who's been studying spiders for almost a decade, told MailOnline that we has a Harry Potter fan, saying: 'My colleagues and I feel ecstatic; being huge fans of the books and films, it was wonderful to be congratulated by the person from whose imagination stemmed this fantastic world we so relish!'
JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books tweeted: 'I'm truly honoured! Congratulations on discovering another #FantasticBeast.'
When it comes to the geographical distribution of the spider, Mr. Ahmed says: 'The range of species is not set in stone; animals get around, more so in the Anthropocene (the current geological period during which human activity has been been the dominant influence on climate and the environment).
'Not all species have rigid environmental requirements, some species such as the Brown Widow, a member of the medically significant Widow spider family, happily get around, being tucked away under vehicles and actually prefer hanging out, around human habitation.'
The spider got its name from its 'sub-triangular abdomen,' which looks like the Hogwarts sorting hat in Harry Potter.
Mr. Ahmed wrote in the paper, published in the Indian Journal of Arachnology:
'This uniquely shaped spider derives its name from the fabulous, sentient magical artifact, the sorting hat, owned by the (fictitious) medieval wizard Godric Gryffindor, one of the four founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and stemming from the powerful imagination of Ms JK Rowling, wordsmith extraordinaire, as presented in her beloved series of books, featuring everyone’s favorite boy-wizard, Harry Potter.
'An ode from the authors, for magic lost, and found, in an effort to draw attention to the fascinating, but oft overlooked world of invertebrates, and their secret lives.'
The spider, Eriovixia gryffindori, is named after the original owner of the hat, Godric Gryffindor, one of the four founders of the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry.
JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series tweeted the researchers to congratulate them on their discovery.
The small spider, which is seven millimetres (0.28 inches) long, is nocturnal and takes refuge in dead, dry leaves which they're well camouflaged for.
The spiders shape and colour allow it to mimic the look of dead leaves when it's asleep during the day so that predators don't see it.
The spider was discovered by a team of scientists in India, led by Javed Ahmed, an arachno-naturalist.
Mr. Ahmed, who's been studying spiders for almost a decade, told MailOnline that we has a Harry Potter fan, saying: 'My colleagues and I feel ecstatic; being huge fans of the books and films, it was wonderful to be congratulated by the person from whose imagination stemmed this fantastic world we so relish!'
JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books tweeted: 'I'm truly honoured! Congratulations on discovering another #FantasticBeast.'
When it comes to the geographical distribution of the spider, Mr. Ahmed says: 'The range of species is not set in stone; animals get around, more so in the Anthropocene (the current geological period during which human activity has been been the dominant influence on climate and the environment).
'Not all species have rigid environmental requirements, some species such as the Brown Widow, a member of the medically significant Widow spider family, happily get around, being tucked away under vehicles and actually prefer hanging out, around human habitation.'
The spider got its name from its 'sub-triangular abdomen,' which looks like the Hogwarts sorting hat in Harry Potter.
Mr. Ahmed wrote in the paper, published in the Indian Journal of Arachnology:
'This uniquely shaped spider derives its name from the fabulous, sentient magical artifact, the sorting hat, owned by the (fictitious) medieval wizard Godric Gryffindor, one of the four founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and stemming from the powerful imagination of Ms JK Rowling, wordsmith extraordinaire, as presented in her beloved series of books, featuring everyone’s favorite boy-wizard, Harry Potter.
'An ode from the authors, for magic lost, and found, in an effort to draw attention to the fascinating, but oft overlooked world of invertebrates, and their secret lives.'
Music: "Floating Cities" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Source: Indian Arachnology , Times of India, Daily Mail.
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