Australia\u2019s peacock spider, known for its dance moves and vibrant colours, has evolved into 100 different species while most animals only have five or ten.<\/p>\n
Scientists are trying to uncover the puzzling reason why there are so many variations in its species by closely studying the arachnid\u2019s \u2018dark DNA\u2019 \u2013 an enigma in its genetic material.<\/p>\n
Researchers propose that the \u2018dark DNA\u2019 might be the cause of the spider\u2019s ability to quickly adapt to environments and form new species.<\/p>\n
Male peacock spiders can be identified by the spectacular multicoloured design they have on their abdomen resembling a peacock\u2019s feathers, hence the appropriate name, which they use to attract a mate.<\/p>\n
These pinhead-sized creatures can bust out a song and dance, creating a rhythmic drumming sound with their feet, while performing in their patterned costume of colours.<\/p>\n
\nI got some worried looks and I was obviously apprehensive myself<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Jonah Walker, of the Sanger Institute in England, travelled to Australia for his PhD to study the science behind the development of their numerous species, despite admitting his previous fear of spiders.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I told friends and family that I was going to study spiders in Australia I got some worried looks and I was obviously apprehensive myself.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut just a few seconds of watching them dance was enough for any fears to be washed away,\u201d he told BBC News.<\/p>\n
Alongside his group leader, Dr Joana Meier, and an international team, Mr Walker has collected a sample of all the known discovered species of the spider and meticulously categorised them in regard to their behaviour, movement and songs.<\/p>\n
The research was then cross-referenced with the DNA of each species, which, when compared, could reveal which genes correspond to which trait and explain why there is an abundance of peacock spider variations.<\/p>\n
Although the research is still in its earliest stages, the team is optimistic that they already have a strong cause to investigate further.<\/p>\n
A DNA strand is composed of a long string of molecules \u2013 parts of this are genes, which encode specific features and characteristics, such as eye colour or height for humans.<\/p>\n
Yet the majority of DNA sections are not genes, and there is not enough information uncovered about what these \u2018dark DNA\u2019 are responsible for.<\/p>\n
Peacock spiders have triple the amount of \u2018dark DNA\u2019 that humans have. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australia\u2019s peacock spider, known for its dance moves and vibrant colours, has evolved into 100 different species while…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58857,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[1128,3412,18,19,17,133],"class_list":{"0":"post-58856","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-science","8":"tag-australia","9":"tag-bbc","10":"tag-eire","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland","13":"tag-science"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58856","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58856"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58856\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58857"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58856"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58856"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58856"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}