Chinese scientist discovers new spider species

KUNMING -- Chinese scientist Lin Yejie has discovered a new species of spider in a botanical garden in Southwest China's Yunnan province.

Lin, an assistant researcher with the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, named the spider "Platythomisus xiandao." His finding has been published in biology journal Zookeys.

"They are very beautiful spiders," said Lin. "The female ones are roughly the size of two fingernails, while the males are smaller and usually have red and pink patterns on the back."

Lin first found the species in Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, which is affiliated to the CAS, in 2017, but mistook it for a previously known species named "Platythomisus octomaculatus."

After careful examination and aided by molecular evidence, Lin and his fellow researchers later determined that it was a new species.