New funnel-web spider species named in local’s honour

QVMAG Collections Officer Simon Fearn was collecting beetle specimens in the Mount Paris dam area near Weldborough in north-eastern Tasmania in late 2016, when he spotted something unusual. 

"We were pulling up logs, looking for beetles," said Fearn. "We'd rolled over hundreds of logs and hadn't seen a funnel-web spider, and then this one turned up. I thought it was odd, because normally where funnel-webs occur, you tend to see a lot of them. It also looked different; a little bit weird." 

At the time, two species of funnel-web spider were recognised in Tasmania: one common in the state's east (Hadronyche venenata); and another (Hadronyche pulvinator) from the Cascades area near Hobart that was described in the 1920s and hasn't been seen since. 

"Initially I wasn't going to collect the spider, but something told me I should," said Fearn. "I gave it to [QVMAG Honorary Research Associate] John Douglas and told him how strange it was and that this was the only one we'd seen all day." 

Douglas, the only spider taxonomist in Tasmania, examined the specimen and found it had some unfamiliar features. He began the identification process by sending photos to Queensland-based global spider expert Dr Robert Raven, who confirmed that it was a likely new species. Confirmation came after specimens were sent to Dr Raven and together, they produced a new scientific record for the spider. 

Fearn said his discovery shows how important fieldwork and collecting is to expand our knowledge of Tasmanian species. 

"If you can find a new species of funnel-web spider in 2016, and such a large one too, it just goes to show how little we know," said Fearn. 

Hadronyche simonfearni is named in recognition of Fearn's discovery of the new species and his realisation that it was a different species to the more common Hadronyche venenata. Remarkably, a thorough check of the QVMAG funnel-web collection revealed further specimens of the new species that had been misidentified over the years.  

H. simonfearni has larger, more elongate chelicerae (the pair of appendages at the front of the spider that house the fangs), has a 'shinier' appearance as well as a range of small taxonomic differences clearly differentiating it from the widespread H. venenata. Females attain 25mm in body length and the smaller, longer legged males around 16mm. 

Image: Funnel-web spider species Hadronyche simonfearni. Photo: John Douglas

Douglas and Raven kept the naming process a secret until the new species record was published and revealed at a morning tea at QVMAG last month. 

QVMAG Senior Curator of Natural Sciences, Alfonsina Arriaga Jiménez, said it was great recognition for Simon's work in the QVMAG Collection over more than 10 years. 

“This is an important honour for anyone working in natural science, and Simon truly deserves it,” she said. “It's a fantastic way to acknowledge his significant contributions to the QVMAG Collection, and particularly his attention to detail in bringing this species to light." 

Details of the new species are available on the QVMAG website in Record No. 122 (2025). 

Issued 8 July 2025.