ROOPAK GOSWAMI
Shillong, June 15: A tiny spider collected from a hillside shrub in Meghalaya’s East Khasi Hills has been identified as a species new to science, underscoring how much of the state’s biodiversity remains unexplored.
Researchers from the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) and the University of Calcutta have described the new lynx spider species, Hamataliwa mawlyngot, named after Mawlyngot village where it was discovered. Their findings have been published in the journal National Academy Science Letters.
The study was authored by Souvik Sen, Upasana Bhattacharya and Puthoor Pattammal Sudhin.
Beyond the discovery of a new species, the finding marks the first recorded presence of the lynx spider genus Hamataliwa in Meghalaya, expanding the known distribution of the group in India.
The spider was collected during a survey in Mawlyngot, a village in the East Khasi Hills known for its tea gardens and rich natural landscapes. Researchers found male and female specimens living on Molucca brambles growing along the slopes of the hills.
Lynx spiders are agile hunters that do not build webs to trap prey. Instead, they actively stalk insects among leaves and shrubs, relying on sharp vision and quick movements.
Because they prey on a wide range of insects, they are considered important natural predators in ecosystems and may also contribute to biological pest control in agricultural landscapes.
According to the researchers, the discovery highlights a much larger story.
While several species of Hamataliwa have been recorded from parts of China, Southeast Asia and southern India, northeastern India remains poorly studied. The discovery of an entirely new species in Meghalaya suggests that many more species may be waiting to be documented in the region’s forests and vegetation.
The researchers note that the East Khasi Hills form part of the globally significant Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot, one of the world’s richest regions for biological diversity. Yet large sections of the area remain scientifically underexplored.
“The discovery of a new Hamataliwa species from the East Khasi Hills of Meghalaya highlights the vast, yet undocumented biodiversity of this region,” the authors wrote.
The finding also helps bridge a gap in the known distribution of the genus between the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia.
Scientists say discoveries such as this demonstrate the importance of continued field surveys and habitat conservation, particularly in ecologically sensitive landscapes where species may disappear before they are even documented.
For Meghalaya, the new spider is another reminder that some of its most remarkable wildlife is not always found in its forests’ largest animals, but sometimes among the leaves of a hillside shrub, waiting to be discovered.
