Aptostichus stephencolberti (Stephen Colbert Trapdoor Spider)
Credit: Jason Bond
about the species
The trapdoor spider species, Aptostichus stephencolberti, is only found in highly fragmented coastal dune habitats of California. Trapdoor spider species are ideal taxa for landscape scale genomic studies owing to their extreme site fidelity and limited dispersal capabilities making them highly prone to extinction. Dune habitats along California’s coast are a diverse yet fragile ecosystem very sensitive to human impacts related to development, local perturbation, rising sea level, and invasive species. Consequently, species like A. stephencolberti will potentially reveal novel areas of endemism and high conservation value that may not be evident in species with wider ranges and greater dispersal capabilities. We predict that these large, charismatic, and somewhat already famous species will nicely capture the imaginations and interest of the citizens of California.
why species was selected
We targeted this group of trapdoor spiders because of their endemicity along the California coast, found in each three Coastal Ecoregions. California’s complex coastal topography and history has undoubtedly shaped Aptostichus population structure and played a role in speciation pattern. The California coastline is constantly changing, transformed by wind, waves, and sun while maintaining a characteristic succession of dune habitats with high endemism and sensitivity to sea level rise. Plants and animals that occupy this environment often display a similar psammophilic evolutionary syndrome with adaptions toward conservation of moisture, avoiding or dealing with increased sun exposure, and altered morphologies to contend with sand.
