Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about biodiversity and the hidden quirks of the natural world. A trapdoor spider, known only as “Number 16,” was first ...

In western Australia, in a patch of ancient forest undisturbed by people, researchers set up pitfall traps with the goal of collecting elusive spiders. Their survey yielded two rare female specimens ...

Mark Harvey has received ARC and ABRS grants dealing with trapdoor spiders. After a century of scientific confusion, we can now officially add five new species to Australia’s long list of trapdoor ...