A male spider named Maratus constellatus was spotted in the Little Desert National Park. The colourful arachnid is one of seven new species of Peacock spiders, which are tiny, harmless that are smaller than the size of a grain of rice. The colours of the arachnid are said to resemble Vincent van Gogh's famous painting 'Starry Night'. The tiny Peacock spiders, or Maratus spiders which are native to Australia were discovered by 22-year-old  spider taxonomist Joseph Schubert of Australia's Museums Victoria. Incy Fancy Spider! Newly-Discovered Arachnid Named Karl Lagerfeld Due to Its Uncanny Resemblance with the Late Fashion Designer.

Peacock spiders are usually small, about the size of a grain of rice. It is males which sport ostentatious colouring while females have mottled look. During a courtship dance, males wave their abdomens and legs. While others have flaps which can be extended like a fan due to which they are associated with peacock birds. Deadliest Spiders in the World: New Species of Widow Spider Discovered in South Africa Has Lethal Bite, Watch Video.

Four other colourful species — Maratus azureus, Maratus inaquosus, Maratus laurenae, Maratus volpei, Maratus noggerup and Maratus suae were discovered. The discovery of the seven new peacock spiders has been described in the journal Zootaxa. Joseph Schubert, the 22-year-old peacock spider specialist told BBC, "My favourite species would have to be Maratus constellatus. I ventured all the way to Kalbarri to find this species which is about a seven-hour drive north of Perth. The patterns on the abdomen to me just look so much like Starry Night by van Gogh, hence the name constellatus which means starry in Latin.

Seven New Species of Peacock Spiders Spotted in Australia:

Vincent van Gogh's famous painting 'Starry Night':

He further says, "A few of the spiders in this paper were named after the people who had discovered them. A lot of the species are actually discovered by citizen scientists who'd documented the locality data and taken photos of the spiders and sent images to me. Considering how many peacock spider species have been discovered in the past few years, I certainly think that there are more out there to be found."

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 01, 2020 08:08 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).