We found an unusual looking spider or insect.
Observation by Brian Holter Jr:
We found an unusual looking spider or insect. We have shown the picture to environmentalists and elders and we all agree we have never seen one before like that. It was photographed on a fishing boat that had been in Klawock all winter. This is important because we are noticing new species, mostly birds we have never seen before. I have spoken with people in other areas and they are also seeing this. Some of these birds eat on the blue berries and huckleberries and digest the seeds without spreading the seeds like our normal birds. It also seems to take over nests from native birds. We would like to know if there are any impacts from this spider. Posted by Brian Holter Jr.
Derek Sikes, Entomologist at the Museum of the North, writes:
It's probably the Samwell Cave cricket (Pristoceuthophilus sp), a species of cave cricket we have been finding regularly on Prince of Wales. Its probably endemic and additionally, could be an ancient relic population that has survived from way before the last major glaciations." Note: the Cooperative Extension Service has an online 'Citizen Monitoring' submission system to catalog photos and to process for identification.
8/16/19 Update Derek Sikes writes:
I now think this might be Tropidischia xanthostoma (Scudder 1861). A much more rarely seen camel cricket in SE Alaska.
Comments from LEO Editors:
The square-legged camel cricket (Tropidischia xanthostoma) is identified by the dark body and long slender legs. They are most commonly found near the Pacific Coast from California to British Columbia. Source: Bug Guide Square-legged Camel Cricket Species Profile.
Tropidischia
