7 new spider species get their names from 'Game of Thrones' and other hits
Varys from Game of Thrones. Shelob from Lord of the Rings. And, of course, Charlotte.
They can all be found in caves in Pará, a state in northern Brazil. There, scientists discovered seven new species -- and named them all after spiders in pop culture.
No, none of them eat hobbits, or befriend curious piglets. But these six-eyed spiders are still pretty cool. Even though they live in caves, they haven't lost their pigmentation or all of their eyes. (Most spiders, BTW, have eight eyes.) Some of them were even discovered outside of caves.
The study, authored by Antonio Brescovit, Igor Cizauskas, and Leandro Mota, who are affiliated with Sao Paulo's Instituto Butantan, was published Wednesday in the journal ZooKeys. Here are the names of the seven new species, which belong to the genus Ochyrocera:
1. Ochyrocera varys -- Named, of course, after Varys from George R. R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" books, who is known as "The Spider." No word on whether this species is good at currying favor with the Mother of Dragons.
2. Ochyrocera atlachnacha -- According to a press statement, Atlach-Nacha is "a giant spider with a human-like face which lives in the caves beneath a mountain" created by H. P. Lovecraft. Charming.
3. Ochyrocera laracna -- Shelob (translated to Laracna in Portuguese) is that nasty-ass spider that tries to eat Sam and Frodo as they sneak into Mordor in The Lord of the Rings.
4. Ochyrocera ungoliant -- Damn, these scientists dove into The Silmarillion for this one. Ungoliant is Shelob's mother in J.R.R. Tolkien's universe.
5. Ochyrocera aragogue -- Harry Potter and Ron Weasley encounter Aragog in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. He talks, and is a spider.
6. Ochyrocera misspider -- Finally, a cute and cuddly creature. This one is from the children's book Little Miss Spider by David Kirk.
7. Ochyrocera charlotte -- And, last but not least, the titular character from Charlotte's Web, the book that taught children that people you love eventually die. (Don't worry, some of them leave behind a swarm of floating spider babies.)
So next time you're wandering caves in northern Brazil, remember, the spider that tried to eat Frodo is waiting for you.
Topics Animals Game Of Thrones Harry Potter
Keith Wagstaff is an assistant editor at Mashable and a terrible Settlers of Catan player. He has written for TIME, The Wall Street Journal Magazine, NBC News, The Village Voice, VICE, GQ and New York Magazine, among many other reputable and not-so-reputable publications. After nearly a decade in New York City, he now lives in his native Los Angeles.
