Michael Gordon Rix

Last updated
Michael Gordon Rix
Nationality Australian
Scientific career
Fieldsbiology, zoology, arachnology

Michael Gordon Rix is an Australian biologist, whose publications mainly concern spiders.

As of February 2020, he was Principal Curator of Arachnology and Research Fellow in the Biodiversity and Geosciences Program at the Queensland Museum. [1] He has held numerous professional appointments including President of the Society of Australian Systematic Biologists and Associate Editor of the Journal of Arachnology . He is widely published and cited. [2] The World Spider Catalog lists 166 species names [3] and 22 genus names [4] authored or co-authored by Rix, as of February 2020. Pseudoanyphaena michaelrixi, discovered in 2003, was named after him. [5]

His interest in spiders developed as a boy: “I discovered at a young age that spiders are endlessly fascinating, yet poorly known and terribly misunderstood, which inspired my career in arachnology,” he said. [6]

Rix has an interest in Australian trapdoor spiders and his research into their decline over the past decade; [7] [8] and recent discoveries, [9] has been reported in the public press.

In early 2020 Rix expressed concern over the likely extinction of the assassin spider — Zephyrarchaea austini — also called the pelican spider, which is only known to occur in the Western River Wilderness Protection Area on Kangaroo Island, as a result of the catastrophic 2020 bush fires. [10]

Related Research Articles

Idiopidae Family of spiders

Idiopidae, also known as armored trapdoor spiders, is a family of mygalomorph spiders first described by Eugène Simon in 1889. They have a large body similar to tarantulas.

Migidae Family of spiders

Migidae, also known as tree trapdoor spiders, is a family of spiders with about 100 species in eleven genera. They are small to large spiders with little to no hair and build burrows with a trapdoor. Some species live in tree fern stems. They have a Gondwanan distribution, found almost exclusively on the Southern Hemisphere, occurring in South America, Africa, Madagascar, Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia.

Archaeidae family of arachnids

Archaeidae, also known as assassin spiders and pelican spiders, is a spider family with about ninety described species in five genera. It contains small spiders, ranging from 2 to 8 millimetres long, that prey exclusively on other spiders. They are unusual in that they have "necks", ranging from long and slender to short and fat. The name "pelican spider" refers to these elongated jaws and necks used to catch their prey. Living species of Archaeidae occur in South Africa, Madagascar and Australia, with the sister family Mecysmaucheniidae occurring in southern South America and New Zealand.

Spiders of Australia

Australia has a number of highly venomous spiders, including the Sydney Funnel-web, its relatives in the family Hexathelidae, and the Redback Spider, whose bites can be extremely painful and have historically been linked with deaths in medical records. Most Australian spiders do not have venom that is considered to be dangerously toxic. No deaths caused by spider bites in Australia have been substantiated by a coronial inquest since 1979. There are sensationalised news reports regarding Australian spiders that fail to cite evidence. A Field Guide to Spiders of Australia published by CSIRO Publishing in 2017 featuring around 836 species illustrated with photographs of live animals, around 381 genera and 78 families, introduced significant updates to taxonomy from Ramirez, Wheeler and Dmitrov

Cataxia is a genus of Australian armored trapdoor spiders that was first described by W. J. Rainbow in 1914.

Euoplos is a genus of Australian armored trapdoor spiders that was first described by W. J. Rainbow in 1914.

<i>Zephyrarchaea</i> genus of arachnids

Zephyrarchaea is a genus of Australian assassin spiders first described by Michael Gordon Rix & Mark Harvey in 2012 for nine new species and two that were formerly placed in the genus Austrarchaea. The name is based on the Latin zephyrus, meaning "west wind", referring to the western distribution in Australia and a preference for windy, coastal habitats by some species. It has been encountered in Western Australia, Victoria and South Australia.

<i>Zephyrarchaea janineae</i> species of arachnid

Zephyrarchaea janineae is a species of spider of the family Archaeidae. The Latin species name was chosen to honor Janine Wojcieszek who helped in discovering the first live specimens of the species in 2006. Zephyrarchaea janineae is endemic to the South West Region in Western Australia.

<i>Zephyrarchaea barrettae</i> species of arachnid

Zephyrarchaea barrettae is a species of spider of the family Archaeidae. The Latin species name was chosen to honor Sarah Barrett, who first discovered assassin spiders in the Stirling Range National Park.

Bertmainius is a genus of spiders in the family Migidae. It was first described in 2015 by Mark Harvey, Barbara York Main, Michael Rix and Steven Cooper. As of 2017, it contains 7 species, all from western Australia.

Moggridgea rainbowi, also called the Australian trapdoor spider, is a small spider endemic to Kangaroo Island in South Australia. The spider was first recorded in 1919.

Bertmainius colonus is a spider in the family Migidae. It was first described in 2015 by Mark Harvey, Barbara York Main, Michael Rix and Steven Cooper, and is endemic to south-western Australia.

Bertmainius mysticus is a spider in the family Migidae. It was first described in 2015 by Mark Harvey, Barbara York Main, Michael Rix and Steven Cooper, and is endemic to south-western Australia.

Bertmainius opimus is a spider in the family Migidae. It was first described in 2015 by Mark Harvey, Barbara York Main, Michael Rix and Steven Cooper, and is endemic to south-western Australia.

Bertmainius tumidus is a spider in the family Migidae. It was first described in 2015 by Mark Harvey, Barbara York Main, Michael Rix and Steven Cooper, and is endemic to south-western Australia.

Barbara York Main arachnologist

Barbara Anne York Main was an Australian arachnologist and adjunct professor at the University of Western Australia. The author of four books and over 90 research papers, Main is recognised for her prolific work in establishing taxonomy for arachnids, personally describing 34 species and seven new genera. The BBC and ABC produced a film about her work, Lady of the Spiders, in 1981.

Aname aragog is a species of trapdoor spider in the family Nemesiidae. It is found in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The specific epithet is in reference to the spider Aragog in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter books.

<i>Gaius villosus</i> species of mygalomorph spider

Gaius villosus is a species of spider in the family Idiopidae found in Western Australia in a variety of different habitats.

<i>Gaius</i> (spider) genus of mygalomorph spiders

Gaius is a genus of large mygalomorph spiders in the family Idiopidae. Erected in 1914, for much of its history the genus contained only one species, Gaius villosus. More species were added in 2018. All are endemic to Western Australia.

Eucanippe is a genus of Western Australian armored trapdoor spiders first described by Michael Gordon Rix, Robert J. Raven, Barbara York Main, S. E. Harrison, A. D. Austin, S. J. B. Cooper & Mark Stephen Harvey in 2017.

References

  1. ↑ "Dr Michael Rix". www.qm.qld.gov.au. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  2. ↑ "Michael Rix - Google Scholar Citations". scholar.google.com. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  3. ↑ "Search for species author Rix", World Spider Catalog, Natural History Museum Bern, retrieved 2016-10-29
  4. ↑ "Search for genus author Rix", World Spider Catalog, Natural History Museum Bern, retrieved 2016-10-29
  5. ↑ Desmond, Rosemary (15 March 2003). "Species closes Gondwana gap". The Courier-Mail. Brisbane, Qld. p. 8.
  6. ↑ Pierre, Nicole (20 October 2019). "SPINNING WEB OF INTRIGUE". The Courier-Mail. Brisbane, Qld. p. 28.
  7. ↑ "Trapdoor spiders disappearing from Australian landscape". ScienceDaily. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  8. ↑ Collard, Sarah (2018-05-16). "Rare WA 'armoured' spiders under threat from habitat destruction". ABC News. Retrieved 2020-02-14.
  9. ↑ "Spider discovery a first: New variety of trapdoor found in the hinterland". Sunshine Coast Daily. Maroochydore, Qld. 6 April 2019. p. 28.
  10. ↑ Kilvert, Nick (2020-01-18). "Ancient 'assassin' may have been wiped out by Kangaroo Island fires". ABC News. Retrieved 2020-02-14.


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