Dubbed Whitsunday hinterland pelican spiders, the creatures are part of a bizarre group of predators found in a region on Australia’s east coast about 750 miles north of Brisbane. Pelican spiders feed on other spiders by capturing and manipulating them with their spear-like legs. The name “pelican spider” refers to their elongated necks.
The tiny spiders are just over 0.1 inches long and have two pairs of rudimentary horns and hump-like bumps on their abdomens. The spiders live in the leaves on the rainforest floor. Pelican spiders become active hunters at night, prowling the forest and following long silk draglines that lead them to their prey. When a pelican spider finds a victim, it impales it on its long, fang-tipped jaws, or chelicerae.
Gangsterism Out 