It displays this behavior when provoked, e.g., by a congener, a camel spider, a scorpion or a human. This gives the spider great flexibility - uphill, downhill or on level ground, Cebrennus rechenbergi can move along with ease. Like a gymnast, it propels itself off the ground, followed by a series of rapid flic-flac movements of its legs. Unlike its relative from Namibia, the golden rolling spider, which is restricted to passively rolling down sand dunes, the flic-flac spider uses its legs to create a rolling motion. The spider's most outstanding talent, however, is its ability to move by means of flic-flac jumps. With its feelers and specialized, elongated bristles, Cebrennus rechenbergi creates a tube-like domicile in the sand, attached by silk threads, which offers protection from the sun and predators. The nocturnal spider Cebrennus rechenbergi lives in the sand desert Erg Chebbi in southeastern Morocco, not far from the Algerian border. This new species was introduced in the scientific journal Zootaxa. It is the only spider that is able to move by means of flic-flac jumps. Peter J?ger, spider expert at the Senckenberg Research Institute in Frankfurt, has described a new species: Cebrennus rechenbergi. Like a gymnast, it propels itself off the ground, followed by a series of rapid flic-flac movements of its legs.ĭr. The flic-flac spider uses its legs to create a rolling motion. We'll give credit where it's due - the little critter helping to advance robotics technology is pretty impressive.A spider expert has described a new species: Cebrennus rechenbergi. He studies these species to "find out what the animals do to save energy." And he has now built a robot modeled after the flic-flac spider. Rechenberg goes to Morocco to study desert species and build robots based on their movements and behavior. The tumbling spider was the inspiration for a robot.Įach year, Dr. Rechenberg first discovered the spider in Erg Chebbi, a sand desert in southeastern Morocco. It emerges only at night to hunt for food. The nocturnal Cebrennus rechenbergi lives in a tube-like structure it makes in the sand, covered by a sandy lid. If it performs this five to 10 times within one day, then it dies." 3. Jäger told the Times, adding: "It is a costly move. Scientists believe the special movement is a last resort tactic, used only when needing to escape predators. The flic-flac move consumes a lot of the spider's energy, and could have grave consequences. The spider doubles in speed when it flips, going from 3.3 feet per second when running to 6.6 seconds when tumbling.įrom the New York Times' video on the arachnid: Here are four incredible - and incredibly terrifying - facts about the Cebrennus rechenbergi. Whether you agree with Rechenberg or your first instinct is to take off your shoe and swat, this newly discovered spider is inarguably astounding. When he witnessed its flic-flac movement for the first time, he began to cry. Ingo Rechenberg, a bionics expert at the Technical University of Berlin, first spotted the spider in Morocco five years ago, and the leggy creature had quite a profound effect on him. This allows the spider to be highly flexible and capable of escaping harm, such as in the presence of a predator. Jäger explains in a Senckenberg Research Institute report.Like a gymnast, the Cebrennus rechenbergi creates a tumbling motion by propelling itself into the air, followed by a series of flic-flac movements with legs. "However, the unique mode of locomotion also serves as a criterion to distinguish the species," Dr. Initially mistaken for a sister series inhabiting Tunisia and Algeria, the acrobatic spider has been identified as the Cebrennus rechenbergi after closely comparing the two species' copulatory organs. Jäger has been able to identify the flic-flac as a new species. Peter Jäger, a taxonomist at the Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum in Frankfurt, Germany, nicknamed the spider the flic-flac after the gymnastics move. Scientists have recently discovered the "flic-flac" spider in the Moroccan Sahara, reports The New York Times, and it can do flips like an eight-legged Gabby Douglas. Arachnophobes, look away, because this spider will do a handspring into your nightmares.
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