A rare wolf spider species thought to be extinct in the UK has been rediscovered on the Isle of Wight, delighting conservationists.
The Aulonia albimana, newly nicknamed the white-knuckled wolf spider for the pale joints on its palps, was found during a survey at the National Trust’s Newtown nature reserve, an area only reachable by boat.
Entomologists Mark Telfer and Graeme Lyons made the remarkable find just minutes before their collection time ran out. The spider, last recorded in 1985, is tiny — adults measure just 3.8–4.4mm — and its hunting behaviour remains largely unknown.
The species was discovered in short, sunlit turf grazed by Hebridean sheep, whose management helped restore the open habitat the spider needs.
Helen Smith of the British Arachnological Society called it “one of Britain’s lost species rediscoveries of the century,” while the National Trust said the find shows their long-term conservation efforts are paying off.
