Overview
- The peer-reviewed study in Subterranean Biology documents a mosaic of trichternet webs covering about 106 square meters.
- Researchers counted roughly 110,000–111,000 spiders, with Tegenaria domestica and Prinerigone vagans coexisting in colony-like numbers.
- Stable-isotope results trace energy from sulfur-oxidizing microbial biofilms to midges and flies that the spiders capture.
- Genetic and gut-microbiome analyses show divergence from surface conspecifics, consistent with long-term isolation and possible subterranean adaptation.
- The team calls for safeguarding the fragile site, noting that the cave’s transboundary location complicates conservation efforts.