{"id":583273,"date":"2026-04-14T08:28:25","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T08:28:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/583273\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T08:28:25","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T08:28:25","slug":"aussie-adventurer-holds-breath-while-taking-world-first-image-of-rare-creature","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/583273\/","title":{"rendered":"Aussie adventurer ‘holds breath’ while taking world-first image of rare creature"},"content":{"rendered":"

Inside a secluded forest that few outsiders have visited, an Aussie photographer has taken the first clear image of a rarely seen spider<\/a> in the wild.<\/p>\n

Nick Volpe<\/a> and fellow naturalist Lucy Kania have photographed close to 3,000 species of bug during their travels around the world.<\/p>\n

But the colourful orb weaver, Gasteracantha aciculata, that villagers in Papua New Guinea\u2019s East New Britain region guided them to, is one of their most exciting experiences.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was absolutely elated,\u201d Volpe told Yahoo News.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s such a unique-looking spider.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s mostly all white, but there\u2019s some black, and then the outer edge of the abdomen has this really rich yellow and red colour.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Left:<\/p>\n

Photographer Nick Volpe held his breath as he snapped a world-first picture of Gasteracantha aciculata. Source: Lucy Kania<\/p>\n

Photographer holds his breath to snap rare spider<\/p>\n

To get the research-grade picture of the spider, Volpe encouraged it onto a sheet of white perspex.<\/p>\n

With dozens of locals watching on, he tried to bring the creature into focus through his lens.<\/p>\n

But orb weavers generally only feel comfortable crouching on their webs, and so when this individual was moved away, it didn\u2019t want to sit still.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was feeling 100 emotions at once,\u201d Volpe recalled.<\/p>\n

\u201cSeeing it in the wild, the experience of being guided by local people, and then the spider not behaving, it was a perfect storm.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it\u2019s a storm we\u2019ve encountered before trying to photograph invertebrates.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo I literally held my breath and had full concentration inside the excitement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Celebration as world-first image published<\/p>\n

There are around 70 species of Gasteracantha spider found throughout Australasia and South East Asia, and each has unique colourings and long spines, which are effective defence mechanisms against predators like birds.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen birds try and grab them, their abdomen is so spiky with these weird horns, it’s actually really hard for them to digest them,\u201d Volpe said.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Nick Volpe captured the first known clear image of a live Gasteracantha aciculata in the wild. Source: Nick Volpe<\/p>\n

Gasteracantha look similar to Australia\u2019s Christmas or jewel spider, but it is from a completely different genus called Austracantha.<\/p>\n

Volpe uploaded his image to the nature app iNaturalist<\/a>, creating plenty of excitement among online observers.<\/p>\n

Previous examples uploaded to the website only showed the spider’s black undercarriage.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat a stunning discovery! First proper example of this species! Congratulations!\u201d an expert in the Gasteracantha genus wrote in response.<\/p>\n

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

You can also follow us on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, TikTok<\/a>, Twitter<\/a> and YouTube<\/a>.<\/p>\n