In its eagerness to speed up work on the Metro-III corridor, the state government may shut its eyes to the rich biodiversity of Goregaon's Aarey Milk Colony and claim that it doesn't host much wildlife, but the truth has come crawling out of the fore
Piranthus decorus, rediscovered after 122 years
In its eagerness to speed up work on the Metro-III corridor, the state government may shut its eyes to the rich biodiversity of Goregaon's Aarey Milk Colony and claim that it doesn't host much wildlife, but the truth has come crawling out of the forest.
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A new species of spider -- Heterophrictus aareyeneis -- was discovered here in 2014, and four others were rediscovered between 2011 and 2017. The last time one of the species -- Piranthus decorus -- was spotted was over a century ago. The research is going to be published in Acta Arachnologica, a Japanese journal on arachnology, in its August issue.
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The findings
In 2014, Heterophrictus aareyeneis (from the family of tarantulas and named after the Goregaon green lung) was discovered near a government guesthouse in Aarey by Mumbai-based wildlife researchers Rajesh Sanap and Zeeshan Mirza. The discovery was published in 2014. The species owes a lot of resemblance to tarantulas found in Africa.
Sanap was also involved with researcher John Caleb of Chennai in the rediscovery of a species of jumping spider -- Piranthus decorus -- in Aarey. The last time this species was spotted was 122 years ago in then Burma.
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The rediscoveries are proof that Aarey is not only one of the last surviving green lungs of Mumbai, but also has hidden biodiversity treasures.
Heterophrictus aareyeneis, a new species found in Aarey
Specialised predators
Piranthus decorus was first discovered in Tharrawaddy, Burma, in 1895 by Swedish arachnologist, Tamerlan Thorell. Another specimen of the same species was collected from Palon, Burma.
Sanap photographed this spider in Aarey in 2015. During surveys carried out a year later, a female spider of this species was discovered in the same locality.
Jumping spiders, named after their trait of hopping over long distances, facilitated by strong forelegs, comprise 13% of the global spider diversity. They are specialised predators owing to their excellent eyesight and reflexes.
Both specimens of the Piranthus decorus rediscovered at Aarey were found inhabiting tree trunks.
May be at risk
Aarey faces the threat of losing its green cover. Despite being home to over 4 lakh trees, the government claims that the area is a grassland to get clearance for a Metro car depot. mid-day had reported on February 12, 2015, that the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation had claimed that there was no wildlife on the site.
Sanap suspected that these spider species could inhabit the area within the car depot. “Their presence in that area is yet to be studied, but since their habitat is diverse, it's possible that they fall within the proposed area,” he said.
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