‘Rare’ creature not seen in 30 years found outside researcher’s lab in Australia
In a small patch of undisturbed ancient bushland in Western Australia, researchers stumbled upon a rare “jewel.”
Hidden in a burrow in the remnants of the Whadjuk boodja, or Perth’s Swan Coastal Plain bushland, was a Teyl trapdoor spider — the first sighting in the region in 30 years, according to an Aug. 20 news release from Edith Cowan University.
It would have been easy to miss, even for experts like Dr. Leandra Mason, of Edith Cowan University, and Kingsley Dixon, a botany professor at the University of Western Australia.
According to the release, the two were working near the University of Western Australia Field Station laboratory when they “incidentally” found the spider burrows.
“For almost 50 years I have worked in this bushland and who would have thought such an extraordinary discovery would happen right on our doorstep — literally at the front door to the laboratory,” Dixon said in the release.
“What makes this discovery even more extraordinary is that it appears to be an undescribed species, not yet formally named or studied,” Mason said.
Mason collected a pregnant female for observation. She and her babies will be released back into the wild at the same site and closely monitored, experts said.
The word Teyl is derived from Noongar languages, spoken by the Aboriginal Australians from the region, according to Mason. It translated to “shiny stone” — a reference to the spiders’ glossy “gem-like” bodies, according to the release.
Mason said this rare find will provide “foundational knowledge” that can inform conservation efforts and habitat management recommendations, adding that the Teyl trapdoor spiders, and other species in the region are “in desperate need of protection.”
“Let this be a call to be humbled, to celebrate and protect the extraordinary life that continues — often unseen — in the smallest pockets of nature around us,” Mason said.
This story was originally published August 21, 2025 at 3:08 PM with the headline "‘Rare’ creature not seen in 30 years found outside researcher’s lab in Australia."
