Cebrennus rechenbergi
{{Short description|Species of spider}}
{{For|the wheel spider of Southern Africa|Carparachne aureoflava}}
{{Speciesbox
| image = Cebrennus rechenbergi 1.jpg
| image_caption = Cebrennus rechenbergi rolling across the sand.
| genus = Cebrennus
| species = rechenbergi
| authority = Peter Jäger, 2014
| synonyms =
| range_map = Morocco, region Meknès-Tafilalet, province Errachidia.png
| range_map_caption = Map of Morocco with the Errachidia Province in dark red, the region where Cebrennus rechenbergi lives
}}
Cebrennus rechenbergi, also known as the Moroccan flic-flac spider and cartwheeling spider,{{cite book|last1=Goldstein|first1=Jack|title=101 Amazing Facts about Spiders: ...and other arachnids|date=3 September 2014 |publisher=Andrews UK Limited|isbn=9781783339396|page=16|language=en}} is a species of huntsman spider indigenous to the sand dunes of the Erg Chebbi desert in Morocco. If provoked or threatened it can escape by doubling its normal walking speed using forward or backward flips similar to acrobatic flic-flac movements used by gymnasts.{{cite news|last1=Prostak|first1=Sergio|title=Cebrennus rechenbergi: Cartwheeling Spider Discovered in Morocco|url=http://www.sci-news.com/biology/science-cebrennus-rechenbergi-spider-morocco-01903.html|accessdate=23 May 2015|agency=Sci-News.com|date=May 6, 2014}} C. rechenbergi is the only spider known to use this unique form of rolling locomotion.{{cite news|author1=Bröhl, Ilona |author2=Judith Jördens |title=THE MOROCCAN FLIC-FLAC SPIDER: A GYMNAST AMONG THE ARACHNIDS|url=http://www.senckenberg.de/root/index.php?page_id=5210&year=2014&kid=2&id=3095|accessdate=23 May 2015|agency=Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung|date=28 April 2014}} The discovery of the Moroccan flic-flac spider has influenced biomimetic robot research, resulting in the development of an experimental robot based on the spider's motion.King, R.S. (2013). BiLBIQ: A Biologically Inspired Robot with Walking and Rolling Locomotion. Biosystems and Biorobotics. 2. Springer, Verlag, Berlin, Heidelberg. {{ISBN|978-3-642-34681-1}} {{doi|10.1007/978-3-642-34682-8}}
Etymology
The spider is named after its discoverer, Ingo Rechenberg, bionics professor at the Technische Universität Berlin. Rechenberg may have first encountered the spider on a trip to Morocco as early as 2006, but it was not until 2008 that he collected the first specimen.Im Gespräch: Ingo Rechenberg über eine neu entdeckte Art Rollende Spinnen für den Mars. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, p. 7. January 10, 2009.{{cite news|last1=N. BHANOO|first1=SINDYA|title=A Desert Spider With Astonishing Moves|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/06/science/a-desert-spider-with-astonishing-moves.html?_r=0|accessdate=23 May 2015|agency=The New York Times|date=May 4, 2014}} It was initially confused with the Tunisian spider Cebrennus villosus, but later identified as a separate species by Peter Jäger of the Senckenberg Nature Research Society. After observing small variations in the genitalia of the two species and noticing the distinctive flic-flac motion of the spider, Jäger confirmed its status as a new species. The holotype is dated 15 July 2009.Jäger, Peter (April 2014). Cebrennus Simon, 1880 (Araneae: Sparassidae): a revisionary up-date with the description of four new species and an updated identification key for all species. Zootaxa, 3790 (2): 339–350. {{doi|10.11646/zootaxa.3790.2.4}}
Description
Jäger describes C. rechenbergi as a medium-sized huntsman spider. Male bodies measure {{cvt|13.8|to|19.0|mm}} long; female bodies measure {{cvt|19|to|19.5|mm}} long. Males and females are similarly colored white with black scopulae on their ventral legs, and yellow coloring on their dorsal opisthosoma and femora.
Behavior
File:Cebrennus rechenbergi.webming]]
The Moroccan flic-flac spider is nocturnal and is known to feed on moths before sunrise. It spends the hot desert days in its cool burrow in the sand protected from the sun and predators. The spider creates its dwelling with its pedipalps (feelers) and bristles, forming long, vertical tubes out of sand and silk. Using a series of rapid, acrobatic flic-flac movements of its legs similar to those used by gymnasts, the spider is able to actively propel itself off the ground, allowing it to move both down and uphill, even at a 40 percent incline. This behavior is different than other huntsman spiders, such as Carparachne aureoflava from the Namib Desert, which uses passive cartwheeling as a form of locomotion. The flic-flac spider can reach speeds of up to 2 m/s using forward or back flips to evade threats.
Distribution
File:ErgChebbi.jpg sand dune habitat]]
C. rechenbergi lives in the sand dunes of the Erg Chebbi desert located in Errachidia Province in southeastern Morocco near the border with Algeria. It is one of 17 species in the genus Cebrennus, typically found in Northern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.Platnick, Norman I. (2014). [http://research.amnh.org/iz/spiders/catalog/SPARASSIDAE.html Fam. Sparassidae]. The World Spider Catalog, Version 14.5. New York, NY, US: American Museum of Natural History. {{doi|10.5531/db.iz.0001}} Retrieved 28 July 2014.
Spider robot
Rechenberg's discovery of the flic-flac spider inspired the development of a biomimetic robot based on the rolling spider locomotion. The design process initially involved at least four generations, with the fourth using six legs in three pairs.{{#tag:ref|When King 2013 published his work on Rechenberg's robot design, Cebrennus rechenbergi had not yet been differentiated from Cebrennus villosus as a new species. King makes a note of this, writing that any future taxonomic changes were beyond the scope of the book.|group="Note"}} Rechenberg named the working machine model Tabbot, based on the Berber word "tabacha", meaning spider. The model, which is approximately 25 cm in length, can both walk in the sand and turn somersaults to move. Rechenberg envisions possible uses for the robot "in agriculture, on the ocean floor, or even on Mars".Hays, Brooks (6 May 2014). [http://www.upi.com/Science_News/2014/05/06/Cartwheeling-spider-inspires-robot/8981399395704/ Robot mimics cartwheel movement of desert spider]. United Press International. Retrieved 18 July 2014.
Notes
{{Reflist|group="Note"}}
References
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External links
{{Commons category}}
- [https://web.archive.org/web/20150502142836/http://www.bionik.tu-berlin.de/institut/Tabacha.htm Photographs and video], Technische Universität Berlin
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FznBIIUdtw Ingo Rechenberg demonstrating C. rechenbergi movements]
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJhTrPDUoxs Video Cebrennus rechenbergi – the flic-flac spider]
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvfebXjcewU Video of Tabbot]
{{Taxonbar|from=Q16735951}}