March 9, 2009--
This spider-hunting wasp is one of 19 new species recently found in Australia
--most of them in Western Australia state, considered a "hotbed of biodiversity," scientists announced.
hunt down and paralyze spiders, which are later eaten alive by the wasps' developing larvae.
In all, scientists found 11 spiders and spider relatives, 3 crustaceans, 2 insects, a mollusc, a worm, and a sponge.
(Related pictures: "Cyanide Millipede, Huge Spider Among New Species."
"The discovery of new species of life on Earth is an ongoing and exciting process," study author Mark Harvey, head of terrestrial zoology at the Western Australian Museum, said in a statement.
"The future of all life on this fragile planet depends on how quickly we can recognize, document, and describe new species," added Harvey, whose discoveries appeared recently in the journal Records of the Western Australian Museum.
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Photograph courtesy Mark Harvey, Western Australian Museum