A massive face-sized tarantula was discovered in Sri Lanka, according to a report by Wired magazine.
The Poecilotheria rajeri spiders have been spotted on more than one occasion and have a leg span of 8 inches across. Photos and video of the spider have gone viral on a number of social media sites this week.
"They are quite rare," scientist Nanayakkara said to Wired. "They prefer well-established old trees, but due to deforestation the number have dwindled and due to lack of suitable habitat they enter old buildings."
The spider is named after a police officer Michael Rajakumar Purajah, the person who helped local scientist work through difficult climate of Sri Lanka according to the Examiner.
The spider reportedly has a unique pink mark on its abdomen that sets itself apart from tarantulas and is significantly larger than your average tarantula.
"The description and figures are excellent and will provide a good basis for establishing whether it is a good species," said Robert Raven, and Arachnologist according to Wired. "The genus Poecilotheria has not been taxonomically revised," he said. "Popping new species out in that situation is always going to be fraught with doubt and difficulty."
More research is being conducted on the face-sized spider, but U.S. citizens won't be seeing it anytime soon as all research will be conducted overseas.
The spider is also venomous, but not dangerous to people. It can reportedly kill rodents, small birds, and snakes according to Wired.
"This species has enough significant differences to separate it from the other species," said Peter Kirk, editor of the British Tarantula Society's journal. "I absolutely would love to see DNA sampling done - on all the species of Poecilotheria."
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